Fame and Fortune
by BeautifulBabeForever
Summary: Everyone has always known Stephanie was different, but this version is confident and goes after what she wants. Babe HEA, but AU. Hope you enjoy. Rating Updated M First attempt at smut!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Fame and Fortune**

(Ten years ago)

"Parent and honored guests, I give you this year's valedictorian, Stephanie Plum." introduced the principle. There was a round of applause and chants for 'Steph, Steph, Steph' along with wolf whistles and cheers.

"Thank you. Class of 2001, it has been my honor these last four years to attend school with all of you. We have all had our fair share of good times and bad, some more than others, but we have always been there for each other. If anyone had told me four years ago that I would be standing here giving this speech I would have thought they were crazy, but here I am. So see, this is proof that anything can happen when you set your mind on what you want. You all know that I'm not the most conventional person and I have my own way of doing things, but no matter what I get them done. Well, I have a little advice for all of you as we move on to the next step in our journeys." I pause and take a deep breathe before continuing, looking straight at my classmates.

"Never give up your dreams. Never let anyone tell you that you can't do something, stick to your guns and don't listen to the nay sayers, spread your wings and fly. Never let anyone force you to be who you aren't, be true to yourself, because that is who you have to live with for the rest of your life, not anyone else, You! Just because you live in a certain area don't let that dictate who you become the rest of your life. If you have dreams go out and seek them out, make them happen, because if you don't you will always regret it. When you look back at your last four years here at school, make sure that you remember all that we have accomplished and all that we have dreamed to do in our future. Never forget the people next to you and know that they will be there to support you no matter what. Accept those around you for who they are and what they want, don't allow the influence of others to change the way you look at your friends. Only then will you be not only true to yourself, but also live with no regret."

"Acceptance is something that we all strive for, but at what cost? Are we willing to sacrifice what we want and believe in for the sake of others? I'm not, and neither should you. As we take this next step into this next stage of lives always remember who you are, because that is what will truly make you happy. And if you aren't happy, then what type of life are we truly living? Never give up your dreams, and remember to dream big. Congratulations Class of 2001." I concluded my speech and the whole graduating class screams their approval. I look out into the crowd and see my father and grandmother giving me a standing ovation, and I see my mothers retreating form walking out the door.

As the principle brings the ceremony to an end I find myself getting more and more excited for this day to be over. Tomorrow I will be leaving and starting the next faze of my life. California here I come.

XXXXXXXXX

"Pumpkin, you were wonderful up there. I don't think that I've ever been more proud of you. You've accomplished so much, but are you sure that you want to leave tomorrow? Can't you wait a few more days?" Dad asks. "I'm really going to miss you, you know." giving me a tight hug.

"I'll miss you too daddy, but I can't stay here and have her cut me down any more. Mary Lou is going to drive out there with me and we'll have a bit of fun before I start looking for a job. I have enough money to survive for a while that I saved up from working the last year. Since I'll be staying with Uncle Mike, thanks to you, I don't have to worry about finding a place to live until school starts in September. But I plan to start auditioning for commercials and other roles as soon as Mary Lou comes home. I want to get started." I say to him.

"I understand. I'm sorry about your mother, I don't know what her problem is." He says sadly.

"I do, she doesn't understand and accept me, but that's her problem, not mine." I say to him.

"Pumpkin, I still wish you had chosen to go to school in New York instead of California, I would've been able to see you more often, but I can understand." Dad says even more sadly. "Maybe the distance between the two of you will help her understand what she's losing."

"I doubt it daddy, but what ever happens I'm okay with it. I have a full ride scholarship to USC and I only have two years to finish my bachelor's degree because of the community college classes that I took. It could be less depending on the amount of classes that I can take at a time." I tell him.

"Don't work yourself into the ground. Enjoy yourself Pumpkin, you only get to live your first year at college once. Don't forget that." He reminds me.

"I will. I may have been busy with school here to, but I still had a lot of fun. Thank you for everything daddy, the new car will be a big help and I won't have to worry about breaking down on the way to California." I say to him.

"Alright, well have fun tonight and stay safe. I'll see you in the morning before you leave. I love you Pumpkin, no matter what." He says.

"Thanks daddy. I will always love you too." I give him a hug and head for the door.

**So what do you think? Interesting enough to see where it goes?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first entry of this story. This is still more back story, but you get to meet some new characters. I hope you enjoy it. **

(Six years ago)

"Grandma, can you come down here please?" I called to Grandma Mazur.

"Coming." I see her lime green spandex outfit bouncing down the stairs of our Beverly Hills mansion. "What's up baby granddaughter?"

"Can you please explain to me why I see you on the morning news wearing nothing but your underwear again? I seem to be missing something here. You're home, you weren't under arrest and you don't seem to have a hang over, yet it's nine am, and you obviously had a good time last night." I question her.

"Well, me and some of my friends went out to that strip club last night on Hollywood Blvd and got pulled up on the stage. When we went to leave we couldn't find our clothing and the owner wouldn't loan us anything to leave in so we left in what we had on. When we walked out the door there were paparazzi and news crews all over the place. I think that since I had your car they thought I was you originally. They still took our picture and obviously it gave them a good story. Hey my backside looks pretty good don't you think?" Grandma explains.

"Yeah, pretty good although you might want to go to the tanning salon, you're awfully white, but maybe that's just the camera lights. Alright, I just wanted to get the story before my agent asked, not that he has a problem with it; he just likes to be up on your exploits. Stay safe alright? I have to head out, remember I leave for a new film location this week. Are you planning on staying here at the house or are you going to stay at Valerie's?" I ask.

"Well, actually your mother has been giving me a hard time about not visiting, so I thought I would go back to Jersey for a quick visit and then come back here if that's okay with you." She comments.

"No problem at all. Do you want to stay at a hotel while your there? You know that you can use my account at the Four Seasons if you want. I can call ahead and let them know if you'd like." I offer.

"Actually I think you father would prefer that. For some reason he doesn't like it when I stay at the house." She laughs.

"That may have something to do with the amount of press that you bring with you. But, he's actually going to be visiting me on location for a week. Maybe you should go then, you could keep mom from causing too much damage in the 'burg' grapevine. God only knows what else she has to say about me." I shake my head.

"Hey kiddo, don't worry about it. She just wants to get her time in the spot light. I'll set her straight." She shakes her fist at me.

I had to laugh at that. "Well I have to go meet Emma and head to this meeting. I'll see you later. I love you." Giving her a kiss to the cheek and then heading for the garage.

XXXXXX

"Hey Emma, you ready to go?" I ask as she climbs in my midnight blue Porsche Boxter.

"I think so." She says quietly.

"Hey what's wrong?" I ask.

"Well, John's birthday is coming up soon and I haven't seen him in so long, I guess I just miss him that's all. I'll be fine once we get to the meeting." Emma said.

"Well, if you're sure. I have a surprise for you at this meeting by the way. It might cheer you up. We'll be there in a few minutes. I know I should have told you about this before, but I wanted it to be a surprise." I told her.

A few minutes later we were pulling into the recording company's underground garage and quickly made our way up to CEO's office. "Hello there Stephanie, Emma. It's always a pleasure to see you. Have a seat please." offered Mr. Payne the CEO of Revolution Records, shaking out hands and kissing my cheek before we took our seats.

"Always a pleasure Mr. Payne." I say with a big smile on my face.

"Well Stephanie we have all of the arrangements made for your trip and your Uncle Mike has made the necessary arrangements on his end to insure that your requests were completed. I can't wait to get this all on video, minus the time requested for personal use. Here are the travel itineraries for you both and you will have a nice escort to go with you as well. I believe we have organized a group of three other performers to attend as well. The USO was more than happy to accommodate us, and they were very excited to hear that you were planning this Stephanie. The head of the organization would like to meet you in person when you return. He understands that you are working with a very tight schedule over the next few months, but whenever you have some free time he would like to have dinner. I would be more than happy to escort you if you would like." offered Mr. Payne.

"That would be lovely, thank you." I say nodding my head to him. I turned to Emma to explain. "I knew their birthdays were coming up soon and I made arrangements for us to take a group of performers to their base so we could entertain the troops as well as celebrate their birthdays with them. Uncle Mike made sure that they would not be out on assignment for the two days we will be there. You get to see John for his birthday Emma."

The smile that was on her face was the biggest that I had seen in a long time. Emma and John had gotten married on his leave about six months prior and then he had been deployed to the Middle East. We hadn't seen the guys in over six months and had received very little in the way of letters with everything that was going on over there.

With tears streaming down her face Emma lunged at me and kept whispering 'thank you, thank you, thank you' in my ear. I looked up and saw that Mr. Payne had tears in his eyes. I had told him what this would mean to Emma and I and he was more than happy to offer his help. We gathered all of our things and left with our arms around each other.

Two months later…

"At-ten-tion." was shouted into the microphone and immediately the large camouflage tent that had been set up was silent and all soldiers had snapped to attention. "We have a surprise for you today soldiers. It has been brought to my attention that two certain soldiers are going to be celebrating birthdays tomorrow and normally special arrangements would not be allowed. However, because of these two soldiers we are all going to receive a gift that not many others have the opportunity to receive. You are all aware that we had some very special guests that were expected to arrive today, well they are here and would like to say hello to everyone. But first I would like to invite Sergeant John Mitchell and Sergeant Robert Brown up on stage with me. It is due to these two officers that we are about to receive a very special concert."

"Soldiers, please give a warm welcome to two time Grammy winner and Oscar Nominated Singer/Actress Stephanie Plum." The noise in the tent was so loud that the enemy could have been able to find the location.

At the end of the concert and after all the signatures, pictures and cd's had been passed out of all the artists in attendance the foursome was able to escape to private quarters to celebrate the men's birthdays in style. The two day trip was over before they all knew it and it was time for the men to get back to work and the girls to go back to the movie set.

**So, what do you think? Yes, this is a Babe HEA. Don't worry Ranger will be showing up soon, but not too soon. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the second entry of this story. This is still more back story and explanation for future entries. I hope you enjoy it. **

**(One year ago)**

The phone was ringing in the house, but no one wanted to answer it. Finally I decided to get up from the couch. "Hello." I sniffed.

"Is this Stephanie Plum?" asked a female voice.

"We have no comment." I nearly hung up the phone.

"Wait, I need to tell you something. This is a neighbor of Valerie's, Brenda Philips. I have Stephanie's number in case of emergency. There's been an accident. Valerie and her husband were taken to Midway Hospital in Los Angeles. I was watching Valerie and Steve's children this evening so they could have a date night. I just received a call from the police at Valerie's request. It's very serious." The woman rushed out.

"Alright, I'll head down there now. Thank you. Can you keep the children for the night?" I asked feeling like I was in shock.

"Yes dear. I'll put them to bed shortly. They don't know what's going on. I thought it would be better to hear it from their aunt or their mother." stated Brenda.

"Thank you. I'll leave shortly." Hanging up the phone I ran for Emma's bedroom.

"Emma, we have to get to Midway Hospital, Valerie and Steve were in an accident." I explained.

"Oh god. What about Danny? Can she stay with grandma?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure she'll sleep through the night. You can come back before she wakes up. Let's let grandma know though just in case Danny wakes up." I replied.

After a quick update to Grandma before we left, we were on our way to the hospital. Of all days, why would this happen today? How could this day get any worse? Maybe I shouldn't ask that questions, things could always get worse and I had no idea what was going on, I just knew that Valerie and Steve were in an accident and headed to the hospital. Pulling up there were plenty of news crews already on the scene. I made my way through the crowd of reporters and figured that they had been able to figure out who the victims were.

When I reached the reception desk I was quickly whisked away with Emma to a private conference room. Within two minutes of arriving there were three doctors in the room with the explanation of what my sister and brother in law had been through. Unfortunately, Steve was pronounced DOA, and at that I dropped into the chair in shock. Apparently they had been hit by a drunk driver and then rolled down the hill and were resting on the roof of the car. The driver side took the worst of the impact, but the passenger side had sustained heavy damage from the rolling. Valerie had two broken legs, a broken collar bone and severe head trauma. They were placing her in a medically induced coma to allow her brain to heal and the swelling to dissipate. Because I was listed as their next of kin I had to sign all kinds of forms for their care and then to decide on what to do about Steve. There would be no autopsy since his death was clearly due to the accident.

I had my work cut out for me and I still had to be on set for my latest film in two weeks. There was no way to postpone the film at this point since it had already been put off for about six weeks due to location issues. The press was having a field day with this latest episode in my life, not that I cared much, they always seemed to latch on to any information about me. Much to my mothers' irritation, grandma enjoyed the spotlight; I had gotten used to it and just went with the flow. Steve's death would definitely put a new spin on their reports about my life.

After a week my parents had flown out to take care of Valerie and the girls, grandma had moved into Valerie's house to help out as well, and my dad chose to move into my house to escape the madness that is the Mazur women. Honestly can't say that I blame him. The funeral for Steve had been held the day after Valerie was released from the hospital, and we decided that the girls should stay at their own home to have some level of familiarity since they lost their dad. I made Valerie promise me that she wouldn't let our mom talk her into moving back to New Jersey without talking to me first. Emma, Danny and I left for the filming location and things seemed to start to settle down, especially since I didn't have to listen to my mother harp on my lifestyle. She didn't understand why I didn't want to settle down and become a housewife. Hello have you met me? I travel more than half the year to exotic locations, for movies and concerts and get to date lots of hot, and I mean HOT guys. I even see myself on the cover of the tabloids with men I have never met before; I guess that's the life I lead. Personally I love it. One day I'll settle down, but I haven't found the right person yet, and it won't be the traditional relationship that she thinks I should have.

(Current day)

"Brown." came a very familiar male voice on the other end.

"Hey there. Did you even look at your caller ID before you answered?" I asked him.

"No, but I wish I had. What's up? Are you finally back now?" Bobby asks.

"Yep. I'm back and I need to ask a favor." I say cautiously.

"Anything you know that." Bobby responds without hesitation.

"You may regret you just said that, but I'm holding you to it. Remember who your talking to, you could get yourself in a lot of trouble." I snicker at him.

"Oh boy. I'm not going to like this am I?" Bobby sighs.

"Probably not. I need a date." I reply flatly.

"And I won't like that why? I get to spend time with my favorite woman." He replies.

What do you think? Famous, Rich and Beautiful, why would she need a date? Hmmm. More to come tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed this short update.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the Third entry of this story. Here is the completion of the Phone call. I hope this will clear up some of the questions you may have had from yesterdays entry. I hope you enjoy it. **

_Previously…_

_ "Brown." came a very familiar male voice on the other end._

_ "Hey there. Did you even look at your caller ID before you answered?" I asked him._

_ "No, but I wish I had. What's up? Are you finally back now?" Bobby asks. _

_ "Yep. I'm back and I need to ask a favor." I say cautiously. _

_ "Anything you know that." Bobby responds without hesitation. _

_ "You may regret you just said that, but I'm holding you to it. Remember who your talking to, you could get yourself in a lot of trouble." I snicker at him. _

_ "Oh boy. I'm not going to like this am I?" Bobby sighs._

_ "Probably not. I need a date." I reply flatly. _

_ "And I won't like that why? I get to spend time with my favorite woman." He replies. _

Chp 4

"To the Oscars Bobby, I need you to escort me to the Academy Awards here in LA." I hold my breath waiting for his response. When nothing came through the phone I had to make sure we were still connected. "Hello, Bobby? You there?"

"You. Want. Me. To. Do. What? I can't do that. I hate public appearances, you know that." He yelled from the other end.

"You said anything, remember? I've told you before to watch what you say to me. How long have you known me? Have I ever not held you to anything you said?" I remind him.

"But I can't do that." Bobby panics.

"Why not? Are you dating anyone? Can you get the time off? If it's a matter of money you know I'll fly you out here." I ask.

"Because I hate public appearances, No and Yes. And you know I don't need help paying to get out there. Why do you need me to do this? Don't you normally take your grandma as your date?" he offers as a suggestion.

"Bobby it's the Oscars, I can't show up with my grandma. Besides didn't you hear what she did at the Golden Globes, my manager begged me to take anyone but her. She got up on stage and flaunted her new underwear, thank god for the time delay in taping. Everyone in the crowd thought it was great, but the network wasn't too happy. The only other man I would ask would be my father. He took me to the last time I was nominated, but he wants my mother to be there, along with my sister and Emma. Come on you have to do this for me. Remember all those tickets that I've gotten you for Broadway, Premiers and exclusive clubs that you've wanted? I hardly ever ask you for your help. Come on Bobby you have to do this for me." I whined, yes I whined at him.

"Can't you take one of your boyfriends instead?" He offers instead.

"Robert Brown, you know very well that I don't take men with me to award ceremonies, otherwise my mother would have me married off in the tabloids. Good God, just suck it up. You are taking me to the Oscars." I growl at him.

"I can't. I really can't." He pleads

"Oh, and why not? This better be good." I say to him.

"None of the guys I work with will understand our relationship. I don't want them taking advantage of you." He sighs.

"What, are you embarrassed by me? You don't want your friends to know about me Bobby? Thanks." I say sadly.

"No Steph, that's not what I meant. They wouldn't understand why we aren't together. We love each other, but we're not together. We each have our own lives, but we would do anything for each other. We would walk to the ends of the earth for each other, but we are not getting married. There are so many of the guys that would kill for what we have together, but we won't change for each other." He quickly cleared up.

"Bobby, people shouldn't change for each other, they accept the person they love for who they are, they shouldn't need to change them. I would never expect you to give up your job for me, just like you would never expect me to give up mine. We've been over this." I say

"Exactly, and that's what they won't understand." Bobby simply said.

"Have you ever tried Bobby? Have you ever explained our relationship to them? I know you sleep with other people, I sleep with other people. What is so hard to understand about that? If you were to meet someone that you wanted to marry I would understand, it wouldn't change the way that I feel about you, it would just mean that we wouldn't sleep together. Hell I would cheer you on even if it was Emma for crying out loud." I say.

"Yes, but that's us, not them. I guess I'll have to try to explain it to them, but when I do, expect to be hit on when ever you see any of the guys. They all think your smokin' hot. Some of them have pictures of you in their apartments here in the building." He snickered.

"Nice." I say with a smile. "Do they know about me at all?"

"Well they know that I have some good connections for tickets. Not all of those requests were for me you know." He says.

"I figured as much. How many times can you go see the Lion King on Broadway before you get sick of it?" I giggled.

"They've all been wondering why I have so many pictures of you in my apartment; they think I am some kind of obsessed fan or something." He laughed.

"Well how about this; bring some of them when you come out here. Your not off the hook, you are taking me to the Oscars as my date, whether you like it or not. You even get to go to the after parties with me. Bring however many of the guys that want to come, but don't tell them who you are staying with. I want to see their reaction when they get here. Give me a little fun since you never explained me at all, creep." I teased.

"Fine I'll get with the guys and see if anyone wants to join me. You may have a house full when we get there though. I don't know many of them that will pass up the opportunity to go out to LA, especially with the Oscars; they'll want to see all the stars at the after parties." He laughs.

"You know I have plenty of room here, and I'll even move grandma over to Valerie's house with my parents. Although my dad may want to stay here, he'll be happy to see you, same with Uncle Mike. By the way, I'll be coming back to New Jersey for a concert early this summer. All the proceeds are going to the USO this year. Would your boss be interested in doing security for me? The last time I was there some psychos tried to get into not only my dressing room, but also my hotel room." I shivered remembering some of the freaks I encounter in Trenton.

"Yeah he probably would be. Talk to him when we get out there. He's wanted to meet you on a number of occasions but has never been able to catch up with you. I think he has a crush." He snickers. "I won't tell anyone who we're meeting up with, or any of the details of this outing. Go ahead and make the arrangements. My guess would be that there will be at least about eight guys that would want to attend this vacation. Just send me the details and I'll be there." He sighs.

"Hey don't sound so depressed, you get to hob nob with celebrities. It's not that bad, you may just have some fun too. And I promise to try to keep grandma's hands away from you this time; I make no assurances for your friends however. They need to be introduced to the life completely." I laugh and he groans. "I love you Bobby, thank you for doing this for me."

"You know I love you. I'll see you in two weeks. I can't wait to see Danny and Emma. Tell them I said hi." He said

"I will, I'll get you the itinerary later this week. Danny will be so excited to see you. I think she would love a trip to Disneyland with all of us, what do you think? It's been a long time since we went there Bobby." I remind him.

"Yeah, I know." He says solemnly. "I just wish it hadn't been the last time that all of us could have gone."

"Me too." Trying to change the subject to something happier, "Hey, this summer after the concert I was offered a spot on Broadway for six weeks to play Velma Kelly in 'Chicago' that I've been debating, before my tour starts. Maybe that would be a good chance for you to spend sometime with Danny. What do you think?" I ask.

"I would love to have you closer for that long, although you'd be pretty busy I would imagine, but if I get to spend more time with Danny that would be wonderful. Hey I better go so I can get going. I'll talk with the guys tonight about coming out." He says.

"Alright, don't worry about your tux, I'll have one for you here, a brand new one to add to your collection. Love you Bobby." I say.

"Love you too Steph, talk to you soon." He returns and then hangs up his phone.

Closing my own I look up and see Emma standing there with sad eyes. "So he's coming?" she asks me.

"Yeah, much to his dismay, but he'll be here, along with a bunch of his friends. I had to bribe him some how, he hates these things. We'll charter a jet with enough room for twenty and see how many end up coming. There will be plenty of beds here to sleep everyone once grandma moves over to Valerie's for the time they are here. However she will be here to greet them, if you know what I mean." I wink at her.

Emma giggles, "That's mean, but I am so looking forward to it. Danny will be so excited to see her Uncle Bobby." At that we hear a squeal from the staircase and a flash of dark curly hair crushes Emma.

**Still confused? More to come on Monday, the boys will be arriving next week and lots of activity besides the Oscars will take place. Thanks for reading along and please drop a review to let me know what you think.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the Forth entry of this story. **

_Previously…_

_Closing my own I look up and see Emma standing there with sad eyes. "So he's coming?" she asks me. _

_"Yeah, much to his dismay, but he'll be here, along with a bunch of his friends. I had to bribe him some how, he hates these things. We'll charter a jet with enough room for twenty and see how many end up coming. There will be plenty of beds here to sleep everyone once grandma moves over to Valerie's for the time they are here. However she will be here to greet them, if you know what I mean." I wink at her. _

_Emma giggles, "That's mean, but I am so looking forward to it. Danny will be so excited to see her Uncle Bobby." At that we hear a squeal from the staircase and a flash of dark curly hair crushes Emma._

XXXXXXX

"Mommy did you say Uncle Bobby is coming?" She asks excitedly.

"You bet kiddo. He's coming with some friends of his and he wants to spend a lot of time with you, but remember the awards ceremony I told you about for Aunt Steph?" Danny nods her head quickly. "Well, he is going to be her date for the evening. I'm going too, so you, MA and Angie will be staying at Valerie's house for the night with Mrs. Phillips. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, I get to have a sleep over." She claps her little hands quickly. "Mommy I'm so excited. Can we take Uncle Bobby to Disneyland?" At that comment there's a sadness that flashes across Emma's face at the memory of the five of us together at Disneyland, when Danny was only one year old, the same memory Bobby and I just had. She tried to push it back, but tears were forming in her eyes.

I quickly grab Danny from Emma, "Hey kiddo, I talked to Uncle Bobby and he's excited to do whatever you want to do. We'll have lots of fun. He'll be here for at least a week, maybe more, depending on his friends and how long he can get off work. He said to tell you hi and that he misses you. We'll call him later okay?" She nods her head in agreement and squirms to get down so she can run off to her room and play.

Walking over to Emma I hug her from behind, "I know what you're thinking, but John wouldn't want you to be sad every time you think of him. We all miss him, but there are so many happy memories to think about, Disneyland was just one of them."

"I know, but it just hurts to think that she'll never know her father, and I'll never see my husband again. There's no way to replace what we've lost." Emma cries.

"You're right, we can't replace him, but we can celebrate the life he lived and honor his memory by telling his daughter all about him. He died in the service of his country Em. That's very honorable, he was one of the best men that I've ever met, and I want to remember his happiness, not live the misery of missing him. Danny deserves to have a happy childhood and she needs to be told stories about her dad. Bobby will be here to spend time with her soon. He probably needs us as much as we need him Em. I think he still blames himself for not being there to save him." I confide in her.

"He wouldn't have been able to do anything for him if he was, he knows that. John was killed instantly by that road side bomb. Bobby would have been killed too from how it was explained to me." She argues.

"You and I know that, but you know how close they were. They were like brothers, you've known them longer than me and you have to be able to see why Bobby would hate himself for still being alive and not John. If I know Bobby, he's punishing himself daily for being alive instead of John, and especially because of Danny." I remind her.

"Your right, I know your right, but it's still so hard. Days like today make it even more difficult." She hangs her head.

"I know. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." I say to her. Today was the third anniversary of John's death and the first anniversary of the death of Valerie's husband Steve.

XXXXXX

(Later that Night in Trenton)

How do I get myself into shit like this? Honestly, I open my mouth to her and I can't think straight. I should have known not to offer her anything she wanted. She always gets me to cave anyway but, that was just like sticking my foot in my mouth big time. Shit. I hate public appearances, and she knows that. She's trying to torture me. I love her, but sometimes the woman infuriates me beyond belief. I would do anything for her, she knows it, I know it, most people that know about us know it, but this? Crap. Maybe I could set her up with someone else that can take her. Now there's an idea. Even if I have to go this time, I will find someone for her to go with in the future.

Sighing internally, I walk into Shorty's to meet up with the guys from Rangeman for dinner. After a few drinks this day would be better. I hate this day; it's just another reminder of what will never be. Walking to the back of the restaurant I quickly take my seat in the last open seat at the table of men all in black.

"What took you so long Brown?" asks Lester.

"Phone call." I simply state.

"Hey man, I know today is tough for you, but you need to let it go, it will only eat you up inside." he says. I just glare at him. 'Yeah, right' I think. Your best friend wasn't killed on a mission that you should have been on instead of him. I shake my head slightly to clear my head.

Trying to change the subject, "Hey guys, we were all talking about taking a vacation soon, how would you feel about joining me out in California? I have some things that I need to take care of and we could have a lot of fun." I say to them.

"Oh yeah? What kind of fun? Lot of California girls in skimpy bikinis'?" ask Lester wiggling his eyebrows.

"Girls yes, bikinis' no. Wrong time of year, the beach will be kind of cold since it's only March, but there will be lots of parties and you know there are always lots of Hollywood types around. I can get us some tickets to some of the hottest clubs and parties around there." I state.

"Count me in, hell I haven't been to California in three years." Says Lester. I grimace at the last memory, it hadn't been for a good reason that we were there. "What kind of parties?"

"I'll have to call a friend and see what they can get me." I state not wanting to give it away. "I just need to know how many are interested in going so I can let them know how many rooms we'll need. There's plenty of space, and we'll be flying out on a chartered jet. All you'll have to bring is yourself and whatever you want to bring."

"So, are we finally going to meet your infamous contact in California?" asks Ram.

"Yep, but I won't tell you who they are until we get there. So if you really want to know you'll have to come and find out. It should be a good time, well most of it anyway." I state grimacing at the thought of the Awards ceremony.

"You don't look all that thrilled man. You sure you want to go? I for one want to see some of these Hollywood types in person. Hey, I wouldn't mind seeing that Stephanie Plum in person. She's hot in her movies and to watch her move in concert, shit man, she's got moves from I don't know where. Wonder if she really is the Sweetheart that Hollywood proclaims her to be?" comments Cal. If they only knew how big a heart she had and how she made everyone around her feel. Well, everyone except that mother of hers. I can't to see what kind of shit she pulls on them though, it really should be fun. The smile on my face grows the longer I think about her.

"I thought I heard that she was going to be here in Trenton in the beginning of summer for a concert. Can you get us tickets Brown? Any chance you could get us backstage passes? That gal is hot as hell. I'd love to get my hands on her." says Vince. I had to squelch the anger in me at that comment. I'd have to warn her again before we got there, not that she didn't know how to handle herself.

"Yeah, like she would ever go for a guy like you Vince. That there is more woman than you could ever handle. Have you seen some of the guys she's in the papers with? All major players in Hollywood, she'd never go for anyone like us." Says Tank.

"I'll see what I can do. So who's in? We'd leave in two weeks, and you'll have to leave all the arrangements to me, your just there to have fun." I ask them.

"Hey from what I hear she has some ties to the military. Did any of you see her perform with the USO in the Middle East? I saw her twice, and I thought that I heard she goes every two years and it is always on the same dates, but the area that she travels to is different every time. It would be interesting to find out what that is about, unless it is a complete coincidence." says Hal. "I'm in for California. I need the break."

All the guys at the tables with us agreed to come. Oh boy this should be good, in all we had, Lester, Tank, Hal, Cal, Binkie, Ram, Vince, Hector and Ranger. I look at Ranger and he is staring at me with narrowed eyes trying to figure out what's up. Oh yeah, this should be interesting, he isn't going to know what hit him. I can't wait to see them all react to Grandma Mazur.

**Alright, so the next update will be the first meeting of? You guessed it Ranger and Stephanie. So tell me how bad should grandma be? I hope this update answered a question or two that you had. Thanks for reading.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the Fifth entry of this story. **

_Previously…_

_All the guys at the tables with us agreed to come. Oh boy this should be good, in all we had, Lester, Tank, Hal, Cal, Binkie, Ram, Vince, Hector and Ranger. I look at Ranger and he is staring at me with narrowed eyes trying to figure out what's up. Oh yeah, this should be interesting, he isn't going to know what hit him. I can't wait to see them all react to Grandma Mazur. _

XXXXXX

The last two weeks had been torture for the guys. They were all excited about going to California, but they wouldn't stop asking questions. What were we doing while we were there? Where were we staying? Had I gotten us into any clubs? Did I have any friends they could see while we were there? Did I know any stars? Oh, if they only knew. Boy will they be surprised. I think Ranger, Mr. Always in Control was getting antsy. I know he didn't like just going with the flow; he always had to be in control of what ever situation we were in. Hey, it comes with the job and life in the military. He was the best of the best in our line of work.

The flight on the private jet was great. I was able to sleep, but from the sounds of it no one else was. However sleep brought with it the nightmare of what I was about to do this coming weekend. I swear one of these days I will learn to keep my mouth shut around Steph.

As we landed in LA at a private airstrip we were met with two midnight blue Suburban's with blackout windows, no surprise there. Randy met us at the bottom of the staircase.

"Mr. Brown'" Randy said with the tilt of his head. "It's nice to see you again. Is this everyone?"

"Hello there Randy, yes this is all of us." I turn to the guys. "Put your bags in the back and climb in, it's about a thirty minute drive to the house." I turn back to Randy. "How is everything Randy?"

"Very well thank you. Everyone is very excited to see you." He says before climbing in the first suburban.

"I am too. It's been a while." I say smiling.

"So Bobby, when are you going to tell us who we are going to see? You must have some damn good connections if we are getting picked up and driven." Lester comments.

"You'll see Lester, thirty more minutes' man, you can wait." I say in response. And only receive a huff in response.

The drive to the house was quiet which was both good and bad. I had a chance to think back to past and think of all the happy times we had all spent here together. Years had passed, but it still only felt like yesterday that John and I were at the airport kissing Steph and Emma goodbye as we headed to Basic Training. Looking around at the palm trees and the nicely landscaped lawns, Spanish style homes, gated communities and flashy cars the closer we got to Steph's place I am reminded of how much different things are now. Living across the country from Steph, Emma and Danny has helped me to forget some, but I have missed them so much. Maybe it's time to think about coming back here, but what would I do?

I was pulled from my thoughts as we stop in front of the gate and Randy enters the code to open them. As soon as we pull through I head a series of whistles and 'holy shits' from my friends and it brings a smile to my face.

"Brown, you stay here when you visit California? How do you even want to come back to Jersey? I wouldn't leave this place if I could stay here." Says Tank.

"Shit Bobby, this place is fricking huge. Who the hell lives here?" asks Lester.

"Brown, you have some explaining to do." Says Ranger.

"You'll find out soon enough." I say as the car stops in front of the double doors. "Come on, get your asses out of the car and stop drooling." With all of the guys now out of the cars with their bags in hand I notice the door opening.

A stern voice comes from behind me before I can completely turn around. "Well Bobby it's about time you got here. It's been too long since the last time we saw you." says Uncle Mike.

All the guys snap to attention noticing who just spoke. I quickly walk up to him and give him a strong hand shake. "Hey there Uncle Mike, how are you?" I ask him.

"Good, good." He says with a smile on his face. He turns to the guys and looses the smile before speaking again. "At ease gentlemen, there will be no formalities in this house. Are we understood?" He asks.

"Yes sir, General sir." They all respond which has both Uncle Mike and I laughing.

Ranger is the first to speak up, "Okay Brown, now you really have some explaining to do. You're related to the General?"

"Not by blood, but the man here has been a very big influence in my life." I turn back to the General. "Are they here?" He smiles at me and nods.

"Come on in boys, make ourselves at home." Uncle Mike says to them all. "Leave your bags here at the door and we will get you settled into rooms a little later."

"So sir, this is your house?" asks Ranger.

"No, I'm just here for a visit today, but you will see me here quite a bit while you visit. I spend a lot of time here." He says to clarify.

"So who does own the house?" Ranger asks as we walk into the foyer with the staircase.

From overhead we hear some one approach and a response, "I do actually, but there are quite a few people that live here with me. It's too big for just me." All heads snap in the direction of the voice, to watch Stephanie walking down the stairs in short khaki shorts that show off her mile long legs, a cobalt blue halter top that shows her sculpted and flawless body. Her shoulder length auburn curly hair is pulled back off her face to accentuate her ivory skin, bright azure blue eyes and red lips. She looked absolutely stunning.

As she ascended the stairs no one spoke a word. All the guys had their mouths gaping and eyes wide open in shock. I locked eyes with Steph and met her at the bottom of the staircase holding my hand out to her. As soon as she reached the bottom stair I lifted her up and spun her around a few times making her squeal in delight. Placing her back on the ground I gave her a soft kiss on the lips and hugged her tightly.

"God I've missed you." I said to her.

"I've missed you too. Thank you for doing this." She says to me before I release her.

"Of course I would." I turned to the guys who were still staring at her mouths open and we both laugh. With my arm over her shoulder I say, "Looks like the cat got their tongues. Guys, this is Stephanie Plum. Stephanie, this is Ranger, Tank, Lester, Ram, Vince, Binkie, Cal, Hal and Hector."

"It's nice to meet you all. I'm glad you could come with Bobby. I've heard a lot about you and have wanted to meet you for a long time." Steph says to them. "And just so you know, don't believe everything you read about me in the tabloids. Most of it's not true." She adds with a giggle.

"Some of it is." I remind her.

"But, not all of it." She elbows me in the side hard. "Guys please make yourselves at home. There is nothing formal about the way we live here, so no titles please, just your names." She turns to Uncle Mike, "You did tell them that right? I think they seem a bit surprised to see you." She chuckles.

"Oh, I don't think it has anything to do with me, I think that's all you." Uncle Mike responds with a laugh.

"I'm not that intimidating am I?" Steph asks.

**So, Thanks to all of you that let me know how grandma should be handled. We will see her in the next few days, and she will be a big part of this story. So, now I would like to know just how you would like Ranger to react. Confident? Unsure? I can tell you now he will not be Mr. One Word, so let me know what you think. Who should approach who first?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517 for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

"_Of course I would." I turned to the guys who were still staring at her mouths open and we both laugh. With my arm over her shoulder I say, "Looks like the cat got their tongues. Guys, this is Stephanie Plum. Stephanie, this is Ranger, Tank, Lester, Ram, Vince, Binkie, Cal, Hal and Hector."_

_"It's nice to meet you all. I'm glad you could come with Bobby. I've heard a lot about you and have wanted to meet you for a long time." Steph says to them. "And just so you know, don't believe everything you read about me in the tabloids. Most of it's not true." She adds with a giggle. _

_"Some of it is." I remind her. _

_"But, not all of it." She elbows me in the side hard. "Guys please make yourselves at home. There is nothing formal about the way we live here, so no titles please, just your names." She turns to Uncle Mike, "You did tell them that right? I think they seem a bit surprised to see you." She chuckles._

_"Oh, I don't think it has anything to do with me, I think that's all you." Uncle Mike responds with a laugh. _

_"I'm not that intimidating am I?" Steph asks. _

XXXXXX

Lester was the first to break from their silence, "Not intimidating at all, but you definitely surprised us, and that can be hard to do." He turned back to me. "So this explains all those pictures we've seen of the two of you. I thought you were just some kind of stalker, or that she was an obsession. You've been holding out on us man." Stepping forward to shake her hand and give it a kiss, "I'm Lester, it's a pleasure to meet you. How exactly do you know this knuckle head here?"

"We met in college, and have never lost touch. Come on into the den, can I get you anything to drink, or something to eat? I know you had a long flight. We'll give you a tour in just a bit, for now just relax and get comfortable." I noticed that none of the other guys had talked since she entered the room. I couldn't tell if they were intimidated or just in shock. Their mouths were finally closed and the blank faces were in place, but there was something else in them that I couldn't quite place yet. I looked at Ranger and noticed there was a twinkle in his eye that I don't think I had ever seen before.

Ram finally spoke up, "So you must be Bobby's connection to all the great entertainment. I always wondered about that. I'm Ram by the way, it's a pleasure to meet you." He stepped forward to shake her hand.

"Yep, that would be me. I get tickets to things all the time and hardly have time to go myself, and making a phone call requesting them is nothing. Let me know anytime you want to see something. I'll make it happen, and that goes for any of you. Any friend of Bobby's is a friend of mine." She says to him and then looks around to all the guys.

I look across the room at Ranger again as he opens his mouth to speak and the phone rings cutting him off. She stands up to excuse herself to answer the phone. Stepping out of hearing distance I say to the guys, "Loosen up, she's just like everyone else, only nicer. Once you get to know her you'll love her. She's not one of those stuck up Hollywood types, the papers are exactly right about her, she is the Sweetheart of Hollywood."

"You'll find that she is more open and caring about anyone else you have ever met. She won't judge you for what you say or do, and accepts you for who you are, not for what anyone else thinks about you, and she will also defend anyone she know from any kind of attack." says Uncle Mike. "She truly is one of a kind." All the guys nod their heads in understanding.

Before we could say any more Stephanie walks back over to us not looking very happy. "I need to apologize in advance, my family just arrived. Please don't hold anything against me that they say." She says with her head slightly down.

"Your mother's here isn't she?" I ask her. She just nods. I turn to the guys and try to explain quickly. "Steph's mother has a certain view of the world that doesn't mesh with her life. Ignore what you hear that comes from her mouth and let Steph deal with her. Believe me she probably won't be here very long once she sees me here." They all nod. Steph looks at me with tears in her eyes.

"I'm not sure why she's here actually. She's not supposed to be in my house." She says as she turns to walk away towards the door. Looking around I see curious eyes looking at me.

"There's a long story behind this which she may tell you later, but that's up to her to explain to you. Also, her grandmother will be coming in as well. Watch you butts, she's a grabber, and her language does not go with her age." That received a lot of curious looks as well. "Normally her grandmother lives here with her, but because of all of you attending, her grandmother will be staying with her sister so you aren't assaulted on a daily basis."

"Steph is nothing like her mother. You'll love her dad, he was in the Army as well. He'll be staying here at the house while they are in town and her mother will be with her sister and grandmother." Says Uncle Mike.

"Oh that should go over well." I say to him flatly.

"Frank's choice, not hers." clarifies Uncle Mike.

"Understood." I say back with a nod.

Hearing voices coming into the living room I stand up and turn around to look straight into the eyes of Mrs. Plum. Frank sees me and grins from ear to ear. "Bobby, it's nice to see you again. Long time no see." Frank states, sticking his hand out to shake mine.

"Nice to see you again Frank. I wouldn't miss this for the world." I reply with a smile.

"What is he doing here?" Mrs. Plum asks harshly looking straight at me.

"He's my date for Sunday night." Steph answers.

Grandma Mazur steps forward claps her hands together and then rubs them together with an evil glint in her eyes. I cringe internally at what might be going through her mind. "Well isn't this a pip. I can't wait to see what all those paprazzi think of this hunk of man Stephanie. It's about time you take a man with you to one of these things. Not that I don't enjoy going, but they can be so boring and I have to do something to spice them up." She says grinning at me.

"You can't take him as your date." Mrs. Plum says flatly.

"I am and he is going with me." Stephanie responds walking over to wrap her arm around me. I squeeze her tightly to my side and place a kiss on her head. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Ranger stiffen at our contact. "Bobby flew out here to go with me and his friends have come for a visit as well. They will all be here for a week, possibly more. Now what are you doing here? You know I don't want you in my house." She turns her gaze to her father.

"She insisted on coming Pumpkin. Once she knew where we were going she got in the car with us." Frank explained, obviously uncomfortable. Steph nodded her head at him.

"You won't embarrass me again Stephanie. You will be going with that man from your last film end of story. I have already spoken with his manager and have made the arrangements." stated Mrs. Plum. 'Uh oh' was my only thought before Stephanie let loose.

"You have been informed on numerous occasions that you have no say in what I do. That has been the case since I turned 18. I don't care what you think, and if you don't remove yourself from this house right now you will not be attending Sundays event. The only reason you are going is because Daddy asked me to let you, not because I want you there. I would prefer that you were no where near there. If you attempt to cause problems I will make sure that you are sent back to Trenton so fast your head will spin."

"He's not proper husband material or someone you should be seen in public with. You will not be taking him to that event." Mrs. Plum raised her voice as she finished her sentence.

Stephanie walked over to the phone and picked it up, "Randy please come drive my mother back to my sisters house. She won't be staying any longer." She states clearly and calmly.

"I'm not done with you young lady." States Mrs. Plum.

"I don't give a shit what you are. You are not welcome here. If you don't leave when Randy comes to take you I will call the police and have you arrested. Are we clear? You will not treat me like I'm some child and you will not talk about my friends like that." Stephanie states and her mother's mouth opens like a fish.

"How dare you. You can't do that to me. I'm your mother." She shreaks.

"Watch me." Stephanie narrows her eyes at her mother. "Get. Out. Of. My. House." She enunciated each word.

"Go Helen. I told you that you weren't welcome and you knew what would happen. Leave." Says Frank.

Randy appeared and took hold of Mrs. Plums elbow to lead her out the door her shouting heard until the door closed behind them.

"Well that went well. So who are all of these hunks?" Grandma Mazur speaks up with obvious excitement.

Stephanie laughs, smiling at her Grandma, "Thanks. These are Bobby's friends, Ranger, Tank, Lester, Ram, Binkie, Vince, Cal, Hal and Hector." She walks over to each one and shakes their hands. Hmmm, good behavior, interesting. I wonder how long that will last. "Grandma, remember what we talked about, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember." She says waving her hand. "I'm heading out to the pool. See you in a bit." With that she walks out the door.

**So, what do you think of Mrs. Plum? Honestly I don't understand why Frank puts up with her. Still nothing from Ranger, hmmmm. We will hear from him tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed this update, let me know what you think. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517 for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_"Well that went well. So who are all of these hunks?" Grandma Mazur speaks up with obvious excitement._

_Stephanie laughs, smiling at her Grandma, "Thanks. These are Bobby's friends, Ranger, Tank, Lester, Ram, Binkie, Vince, Cal, Hal and Hector." She walks over to each one and shakes their hands. Hmmm, good behavior, interesting. I wonder how long that will last. "Grandma, remember what we talked about, okay?"_

_"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember." She says waving her hand. "I'm heading out to the pool. See you in a bit." With that she walks out the door. _

XXXXXX

As I watch my grandma walk out the door to the pool area I thank god for her, she always seems to know what to say to cut the tension in me. The minute she turned her attention to the guys in the room I felt a warm tingle go up my spine, not sure where it came from.

"Pumpkin, I'm really sorry for that. I knew what would happen, but she wouldn't listen to me. By the way, she has been on the phone with your agent lately trying to get him to give her information. It doesn't sound like she has gotten much. She was contacted by Chad's manager about Sunday and they set it up. You might want to deal with that now." My dad says.

I nod my head. "Daddy its fine, and it's over for now." I turn back to the guys. "Well, hope you enjoyed the show, I am sure there will be more to come, but I'll make sure it's fun for you." I giggle.

"I'm glad Bobby is going with you on Sunday. Your grandmother would ruin your night." My dad explained. I couldn't hold back the laughing. Bobby narrowed his eyes at me.

"What's Sunday night?" asks Lester. Turning to Bobby, "Is this the business you said you had to deal with?" Bobby's only response was a nod with a blank face.

I turn to him, "You didn't tell them where you were going did you?" Looking at his face was priceless; I could see the pain in his expression for having to deal with what his friends would think. I started laughing.

"It's not funny, and you know I'm not doing this of my own free will. I'd do anything for you but this will be torture." He grinds out through his teeth. I see the muscles in his jaw flex, which only made me laugh harder. I looked at his friends and see the looks of curiosity on all of them.

My dad beats me to the punch, "He's her date to the Academy Awards." He says with a smile. The guy all stare at me wide eyed.

"Shit Brown, you get to sit next to all those famous people and you're pissed? Man I would give anything to be there instead of you." He turned to me. "If he doesn't want to go I'll be more than happy to escort you Beautiful. All you have to do is let me know I'll be there with bells on." I hear a round of agreement from Bobby's friends, and notice Bobby visibly relaxes.

"Thank you for the offer all of you, I'll let you know if he chickens out." I say with a wink.

All of a sudden there is a commotion coming from the other room and I know exactly who that is. I turn just in time to see Bobby being tackled from behind and a mass of curly hair splayed across his shoulders and little arms around him.

"You're here, you're here. I missed you so much Uncle Bobby!" Danny shrieks in excitement. The smile on Bobby's face is bigger than I had seen it in a long time. He quickly flips Danny over his shoulder so she is in his arms and he can get a good look at her before he gives her a long tight hug.

"I missed you too kiddo. It's been to long. Look how much you've grown. How tall are you now six feet?" He jokes with her while tickling her tummy.

"No silly Uncle Bobby. I'm still little." She giggles and throws her arms around him again. "Are you staying with us?"

"Yep, I wouldn't be anywhere else but here with you kiddo. You are the most important woman in my life next to your Mom and Aunt Steph. I can't wait to get to spend the week with you." Bobby tells her.

"Mommy said you were taking Aunt Steph to the Awards. I get to have a sleep over with MA and Angie and watch you. Can we go to Disneyland? Can we go to the movies? I want to go to the beach, and the park and I want to swim with you." She rattles off quickly barely taking time to breath, making me laugh.

"We'll see what we can do. I want you to meet some friends of mine. Boys this here is my god daughter Danny Mitchell." He makes the introductions while still holding her and her head resting on his shoulder partially hiding her face. "Danny is John's daughter and her mother Emma is around here somewhere I'm sure."

"I'm right here actually Bobby." Emma says from the doorway with a smile on her face, a look that I had not seen in so long on her. Bobby whips around to see her and I notice a wave of anguish cross his face mixed with something that if I hadn't seen it before I would say it was love. Maybe there was hope for them after all; maybe they could help each other through this.

Emma walks across the room and gives Bobby a lingering hug. I watched them interact a bit more while a smile spreads across my face. I think I'll have a talk with Emma later.

Turning back to the guys, "Hey, how about we get you settled in your rooms and then we can all go out to the pool. I hope you brought your swim trunks; if not there are some extras here. Bobby usually leaves some behind. These three have some catching up to do." I say with a smile on my face looking towards them, and turning to head upstairs with the guys in tow.

As we reach the stairs the guys all grab their bags. "How did you know John?" asks Lester.

Continuing on our way upstairs I responded, "Emma, John, Bobby and I were all inseparable in college. They were all two years older than me, but we all graduated at the same time." That comment got some curious looks. "Emma, John and Bobby all grew up together, and I was in classes with all of them, but separately. We all just hit it off and have been a group ever since. Emma and John finally admitted their feelings for each other right before the guys went off to Basic Training. Originally there weren't going to go into the service, but after meeting my Uncle Mike they were convinced that that was what they wanted to do. It was hard at first, but Emma and I had each other and we saw the guys whenever we could. Eventually Emma and John got married, Bobby and I stood up for them, and we are also Danny's god parents. Emma has been working with me since before we graduated from college, she has always travelled with me and sometimes we were able to make special arrangements to travel to the base where they were stationed." At this I received a few nods.

"Is that why you performed for the troop so many times?" Asked Ranger. "I've seen you perform several times with the USO and heard of many others as well. Was it only to see John and Bobby?"

I looked at him in shock. I could see the sheepish look in his eyes realizing that he didn't mean any harm by his question. "No not at all. I went to perform many times without Bobby or John being there. The first trip over however was because of them. We went to celebrate their birthdays. I had my recording company make the arrangements for three other performers to go as well. I figured if we could share their birthdays with them and bring up the spirits of those who were serving this country as well I was doing my part. Seeing the boys ended up being a bonus really once we got there, even though that was the original intention. The welcome that we received was beyond anything that I've experienced with any concert."

"Now every other year we go with a group to different bases to perform on their birthdays, but I also do other performances for soldiers and their families as well. Has Bobby ever explained the John Mitchell Foundation to you?" I asked them.

"I've heard of it, but no Bobby hasn't mentioned it." Ranger said.

"Well, when John died while serving I found out that there really was no system in place to help the families that were left behind in the event of a soldiers death. Emma had nothing to fall back on other than his pension which honestly for the work that you men have all done is nothing in my opinion. Anyway, Emma had no family to turn to really and there was no one from the government offering any assistance so after about six months I decided to set up a foundation that would help the families of those that lost their lives or were injured in the line of duty. Over the last three years we have been able to assist those families with training and education, down payments for homes, financial support for child care, counseling, medical needs, you name it the foundation will assist in any way we can, and that's Nationwide, not just here in Southern California."

"As you can see there is a strong military presence in my life. My father served and retired, my uncle still works with the military on certain projects, Bobby and even Randy. There are many others that I have involvement with that are tied to the military. That is why I do what I do with the USO. In the visits that I've done over the last six years I have made quite a few friends that I would consider family, and I hope to be able to include you all in that family as well." I look straight at Ranger and see a twinkle in his eye.

"I would be honored to be considered party of your family." He takes my hand and kisses it, sending a shiver up my spine. As our eyes meet I see his turning from a deep chocolate to black. Thinking to myself 'I could get lost in those eyes.'

**Okay, so now you have a bit of background on John and the foursome's relationship. What do you think? Grandma gets some kicks tomorrow and things will start to heat up. What should happen with Emma and Bobby? Let me know what you think. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517 for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

"_As you can see there is a strong military presence in my life. My father served and retired, my uncle still works with the military on certain projects, Bobby and even Randy. There are many others that I have involvement with that are tied to the military. That is why I do what I do with the USO. In the visits that I've done over the last six years I have made quite a few friends that I would consider family, and I hope to be able to include you all in that family as well." I look straight at Ranger and see a twinkle in his eye. _

_ "I would be honored to be considered party of your family." He takes my hand and kisses it, sending a shiver up my spine. As our eyes meet I see his turning from a deep chocolate to black. Thinking to myself 'I could get lost in those eyes.'_

XXXXXX

I walked the guys to their rooms and let them know to come down to the pool when they were ready. I went to my room to change into my bikini and head downstairs. As I walked into the den I noticed that Emma and Bobby were still talking in there so I quickly headed out to the pool finding Grandma sunbathing in the nude. A giggle crept up my throat and I sat down in the lawn chair next to her placing my sunglasses on and relaxing waiting for the boys to arrive. I noticed that my dad and Uncle Mike were no where to be seen.

"Grandma, did you run off Daddy and Uncle Mike?" I ask her with my eyes closed.

"Yep, they came out here a little bit ago and turned right back around and left. They said something about having to get their eyes bleached and their brains washed. I don't know what their problem is, it just a little skin." Grandma responded.

I turned my head to her with a smile, "I love you grandma. Just don't get too crazy with Bobby's friends here okay? I don't need them running off too. At least I know where to find Daddy and Uncle Mike. Just so you know, I think Bobby and Emma may have finally broken down. They're in there talking, so do me a favor and don't say anything to them. I'm hoping that they can help each other finally get over John's death. I may just have to find someone else to go with me on Sunday too."

"Well you have your pick of hot men there baby granddaughter. All those men Bobby brought are stud muffins. I can't wait to get my hands on some of them. I'll let you know which one has the largest package and you can go after him." She replies.

At that comment I laugh. "Thanks grandma, I'll be looking forward to hearing with one you think is best."

The guys walk out a few minutes later and I hear their breaths catch. I turn my head in their direction and notice that some of them are staring wide eyed horror struck faces and others have blank faces on. "Come on out guys, we were just enjoying the sun." I said.

Grandma raised up on her elbows to greet them with a smile and flash of her naked upper body and a wicked grin. I laughed internally as the guys tried to divert their attention elsewhere. She got up as quickly as her older body would allow her and walked over to Lester and Hector standing in front of them.

"Come on boys," she took hold of their hands pulling them towards the pool before they could pull back, "the water is just right and I was just going to get in, come join me for a dip. You can remove your trunks and skinny dip with me if you like."

I shake my head in amusement at my grandma and notice that the rest of the guys were smirking. Ranger and Ram quickly walked over to take a seat in the chairs on either side of me to watch the show of grandma, Lester and Hector in the pool. The rest of the guys were leaning up against the bar serving drinks. Grandma had managed to get Lester to take off his trunks, then threw them away from the pool and was attempting to do the same to Hector. Hector swam to the other end of the pool to escape her. Lester seemed more agreeable to play along with her advances, but I did notice the look of horror a few times when she pulled him close for a kiss. At least he managed to turn his head and get it on the cheek rather than the lips.

"I should probably warn you that she is very outgoing as you can see, so you may want to watch yourselves around her." I giggled at the grunts I received from the guys. "I think I will go give Lester back his trunks before Danny comes out here, which will only be a matter of minutes." I caught Lester attention and tossed him his trunks just as Danny came running out the door and was standing at my side.

Looking up at me she asked, "Can we jump in together?" I saw the twinkle in her eyes and I nodded.

We walked to the deep end where Hector was currently hiding from Grandma and we counted, "One, two, three." We jumped in holding hands and came back up at the same time smiling. "Can you swim to the wall by yourself this time?" I asked her.

Nodding her head she took off in the direction of the wall with me following behind just in case. Once she reached it we all clapped for her. "Anyone up for a game of chicken?" I asked. The next thing I knew I was on the shoulders of Lester and Hector had Danny on his shoulders. A few of the guys decided that they would join us and did cannon balls into the pool. "Grandma, go put your suit on and you can play too." I called to her, and off she went. She was more than happy to have one of these men between her legs. She quickly returned and managed to get Vince to hold her up. We all traded a few times and Danny and I were on all of the guys shoulders at one time or another.

After a several rounds of chicken, Marco Polo, and Emma and Bobby joining us we were all tired and needed to relax. I climbed out of the pool and layed down on the lounge chair on my stomach. All of a sudden there were warm hands rubbing suntan lotion into my back and shivers running down my spine. I look to see who it was and ended up looking right into the dark chocolate eyes of Ranger.

"I hope you don't mind." Ranger whispered in my ear in a husky voice, "I wanted to make sure that you didn't get a sun burn before the Awards." I glanced up at him and smiled at him mischievously thinking to myself 'I wonder what else those hands could do'. I turned and caught Bobby staring at us with a small smile and a twinkle in his eye and I smiled back and winked.

"No problem at all. I do burn easily so your help is very much appreciated." I responded. I relaxed into his touch and enjoyed his hands roaming up and down my back and legs. The application of suntan lotion then turned into a wonderful massage and I was turning into a puddle of goo and started to moan in appreciation. I heard his intake of breath at my moan and smiled inwardly, apparently I wasn't the only one being affected by this. Good. "You have magic hands Ranger." I moaned again as his hands dug deeper into the muscles.

He bent down again and whispered huskily in my ear, "I love to hear those sounds you're making. It makes me very happy."

"Really?" I reply in a saucy tone. Thinking to myself 'this could be interesting'.

**Okay so where should they go next? They have a week to fill before the awards. What would you like to see them do? Let me know. **

**Thanks for all the reviews I love hearing your comments and thoughts. More to come on Monday, I promise. Happy Mother's Day!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517 for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

"_No problem at all. I do burn easily so your help is very much appreciated." I responded. I relaxed into his touch and enjoyed his hands roaming up and down my back and legs. The application of suntan lotion then turned into a wonderful massage and I was turning into a puddle of goo and started to moan in appreciation. I heard his intake of breath at my moan and smiled inwardly, apparently I wasn't the only one being affected by this. Good. "You have magic hands Ranger." I moaned again as his hands dug deeper into the muscles._

_ He bent down again and whispered huskily in my ear, "I love to hear those sounds you're making. It makes me very happy."_

_ "Really?" I reply in a saucy tone. Thinking to myself 'this could be interesting'._

XXXXXX

One moment I'm enjoying a massage from Ranger and then the next I hear the shrill ringing of a cell phone not too far from my head. I hear a 'shit' from Ranger as he stands to grab his phone and walks away. I giggle to myself at his response, I know that feeling all to well myself.

I flip over on the chair and to make sure I tan equally and find that another set of hands have replaced Rangers. Opening my eyes I find Ram lathering up my legs, and then he moves to my arms without saying a word. The only response I get from him is a slight smile and a twinkle in his eye. I figured I would try to break the ice with him by speaking first.

"So Ram, have any idea of what you'd like to do while you're here in Southern California?" I ask him.

"Well actually I was thinking of trying to get in some surfing while we were here. I love the beach and it's been a long time since I was on a board. Plus I hear that there are some activities going on at Muscle Beach this week that might be interesting. Have you ever been there?" Ram asked.

"Actually I have. I know one of the guys that runs the competitions and he's been asking me to come down for quite a while, maybe all the guys would be interested in taking a trip over there. We could make a day of it. Unless you wanted to go by yourself, I don't want to force anyone on you, especially if you're looking for peace and quiet. I tend to attract a crowd when I'm down there." I reply.

"I'd love to show you how to surf if you don't already know how. You obviously have great balance from all of your dancing; you'd probably pick it up pretty fast. I know a few of the others know how to surf as well." Ram offers with a laugh.

"That actually sounds like a lot of fun. I'm always up for trying something new. Life's short, you need to live it without any regrets." I respond to him.

From the pool grandma tries to catch my attention, "Hey Steph, do you think that the hottie with you would rub some lotion on me too? I don't want to get too crispy for Sunday night either." I saw a shiver go through Ram's body and I smiled at him.

"Grandma, I'll put it on you. Ram was just going to get us a drink." I winked at him and he smiled appreciatively at me. "I'll drink whatever. Just so you know, she actually is on good behavior tonight. I'll try to keep her away from you as much as possible."

"Thanks I appreciate that. I've seen the papers and know some of the antics that she gets into. She's pretty open about her feelings and beliefs." Ram says with a laugh.

"You have no idea." I reply. Grandma sat in front of me and I was able to apply the lotion to her back and arms by the time that Ram had returned.

The guys all decided to have a cook out on the deck and we cranked up the music, lit some tiki torches and just enjoyed the company of good friends. Since the patio was large enough I was able to get a sense of how good the guys could move on a dance floor. Not one of them had two left feet and I got a chance to talk with everyone of them. I even took the opportunity to dance with my dad and Uncle Mike. As the night drew later the guys seemed to relax even more, that is until we had an encounter with a paparazzi that decided to try to scale my fence and snap pictures of our backyard party. This was a common occurrence for me and it didn't bother me too much it was more exasperating than anything, but the guys were all immediately on guard.

I noticed that Bobby took an immediate stance next to Emma since she was close by him, along with Hector and Binkie. Ram, Ranger and Lester were all around me while Vince, Cal and Hal took care of our unexpected visitor. When I informed them who the intruder was they all seemed more relaxed, but still on guard. Stepping up to the intruder I took his camera from him and pulled out his memory card.

"Gerald, I told you the last time that you were here and trespassed you wouldn't like what happens. You didn't believe me?" I asked him.

"Ms Plum, you know I mean you no harm, I just wanted to get some extra shots before this weekend." Gerald explained.

"I don't care what you wanted, you're invading my privacy. You know how I feel about people trying to get into my home. I play along with you when I am outside these walls, now you just found yourself one less cooperative star." I turned and picked up the phone dialing the police chief directly.

After informing the chief about the intruder, two squad cars pulled up out in front of my home, which caused more paparazzi to come out of the wood works. While Gerald was being loaded into the squad car there were flashes and clicks from cameras all outside the gate. Well, the news should be interesting tomorrow, not to mention what the tabloids will have to say. I giggle to myself just thinking about it. I was also thankful that grandma had left earlier in the evening to go back to Val's house.

Bobby came over to me to hold me while the police did their job and rubbed my back to sooth me. I looked up at him, "I'm fine. This happens more than you think, it's not just because of the Awards on Sunday. It does get a bit old though." I sighed.

"This shouldn't happen, not in your home. This is where you are supposed to feel safest." Bobby replied.

"I do feel safe, especially with all of you big strong men here. Let's head back in and not let this ruin our evening. We have a big day ahead tomorrow." I say as I pull from his embrace and make my way inside.

After the police left and things had calmed down we all decided to get some sleep. I had informed the guys that I had to go to the recording studio in the morning and then depending on how things went from there we could all go to the beach. Since none of them had seen a recoding session they all decided to tag along.

**Hey there, sorry for the delay. This week is really hectic with the school for the kids. Sometimes I just can't stand the end of the school year. This week postings will be a bit delayed and probably not everyday like normal. I will try to get them up ASAP, but stick with me and normal updates will continue for sure next week. I will probably even post this weekend to make up for it. Hope you had a wonderful Mothers Day weekend**.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…._

"_This shouldn't happen, not in your home. This is where you are supposed to feel safest." Bobby replied. _

_ "I do feel safe, especially with all of you big strong men here. Let's head back in and not let this ruin our evening. We have a big day ahead tomorrow." I say as I pull from his embrace and make my way inside. _

_ After the police left and things had calmed down we all decided to get some sleep. I had informed the guys that I had to go to the recording studio in the morning and then depending on how things went from there we could all go to the beach. Since none of them had seen a recoding session they all decided to tag along. _

XXXXXX

"Hey, you don't have to sit there and do nothing while I get the tracks down, you should go have some fun." I said to them all.

"I've never been to a real studio before. I would love to see you at work. I've listened to your music for so long, it'll be awesome to see how it's all done. What are you recording?" Asked Lester.

"I have the studio until noon so I can record the songs for my fundraising CD. The money is going to be split between the USO and the foundation. There are three songs that will be included from me, and then there are a few others that friends of mine have done. There are supposed to be fifteen songs in all, most are patriotic, but some are more of the relationship between the soldiers and their families, and how much they are missed. Hey, do any of you play instruments?"

"I play the guitar." Vince offered. "I've never been in a real recording studio; I can't wait to see it."

"I play the drums." Ram replied. "Have since I was in high school. It's a great way to get out some stress without punching something." At that we all laughed.

"I play the base guitar." Binkie offered. "I used to play in a band in high school before I joined the army."

"I learned how to play the piano, but I do keyboard as well, though I never played in a band, it was more just for fun." Lester admitted.

"Would any of you be interested in playing on the CD with me?" I asked them. I saw all of their faces glow with excitement.

"Wow, that would be awesome. But, what about your usual back up?" asked Binkie. "I know that groups can get pretty upset when they are replaced, even if it's only for one night."

"Nope, they'll be fine. They are all good friends and know what this is for. I think they would actually get a kick out of seeing you play too. You think you guys can pick up the tunes pretty quick? I don't have the music here; it's already over at the studio. My band can give you a hand with the cords if needed, but I have a feeling you'll be just fine on your own. Then after we finish we can head over to Muscle beach and do some surfing. What do you say?" I asked them.

A round of 'hell yeah's' was heard from the group. "Alright I'm heading to bed since the session starts at seven thirty. We'll have to leave by six to get there in time. Daddy, Uncle Mike are you going to come with us tomorrow or are you two doing your own thing?"

My dad stood up giving me a hug and a kiss, "We'll do our own thing tomorrow, but we'll see you for dinner. Let us know where you're at and we'll meet you there. Good night Pumpkin. Love you."

"Okay, have fun tomorrow you two. Love you too." I give my dad and Uncle Mike a quick kiss. "See you bright and early in the morning guys. Let me know if you need anything." I get a round of thank you's and good nights all around. I head up to bed, complete my nightly routine and climb in bed. I'm asleep before my head hits the pillow in a dreamless sleep.

XXXXXX

Waking up at the sound of the alarm doesn't usually bother me much, but this morning I was too comfortable to want to move. As I tried to turn off the alarm the arm around my waist tightened and kept me rooted in my spot. I slightly turned my head to kiss the underside of his jaw and pat his arm and they release so I can turn off the annoying beeping sound that was driving me nuts.

I turn over to my bed partner and shake his shoulder, "Hey sleepy head, you need to wake up if you're going to the studio with me." I say to him only getting a grunt in return and another squeeze. "You don't have to go; I can come back here before we leave for the beach and get you so you can sleep in. This is a vacation of sorts for you. Maybe you can spend some time with Emma and Danny this morning for a little one on one time if you like."

"Are you okay just going with all the guys? I can come if you want me to." He offers in a sleepy voice.

"Bobby, I'm a grown woman, I can take care of myself, and besides, I think you should spend more time with Emma, the two of you have a lot to talk about. Have you ever really talked about what happened?" I asked him.

"Ugggh. I don't want to talk about it." He says and turns over the other direction and buries his head in the pillow.

"You need to, no matter how much it hurts. Get it out in the open and listen to what she has to say Bobby. I love you, but this isn't something that I can help you with. You Need Her." I say rolling out of bed. "We'll come back around noon and pick you all up before we head to the beach. Mic will be happy to see you." I say as I step into the bathroom to get ready.

Stepping out of the bathroom a short while later all ready for the day I gave Bobby a kiss on the head since he had fallen back to sleep and headed downstairs. The guys were all waiting in the kitchen with big excited grins on their faces. We all hoped in the car and headed for the studio and were able to make great time which was unusual for Southern California.

Arriving at the studio we all filed out and went to get to work. The band was already in attendance and we happily chatting away. Everyone was introduced and we got down to business setting up the arrangements for the songs I had chosen for the album. The band made sure to set up Vince, Ram, Binkie and Lester on their instruments and get the tunes down. My entire band was excited to be able to work with military guys and had absolutely no issue with being replaced by them. I think Bobby's friends were all surprised at the reception that they got when we arrived. After about two hours we were ready to record the first of the two tracts.

"Okay guys are you all set and comfortable? Remember it may take more than one take so don't get nervous and just do your best." I reminded them.

"Steph, this is awesome, I can't believe that we get to do this." Stated Vince with a twinkle in his eye.

"Ready to rock Beautiful." Smiled Lester.

"This is so awesome; thanks for letting us do this Steph." Said Binkie.

"Hey after we're done here I'll take you on a tour and see who else is here. You never know who's around." I smile at them. "Alright, let's get the first tract down."

"Hey Beautiful, can I ask you why you chose these songs? They wouldn't be typical songs to put on a cd to send over to the troops in my opinion, but I know you have to have a reason for them." Lester asked.

"Your right, they don't necessarily fit with the typical US Rocks statement or Tributes to our soldiers. I chose these because they reflect the feelings of those that were left behind. I hope it will remind them that just because they aren't with their families that they are not forgotten. I've been in that position with loved ones gone to fight for our country and these songs speak to me for how I feel about them. I like to think that these two songs will help them remember that we may be at home, but we will never let them go." I respond.

All the guys nod their understanding and we got down to business. The studio filled with all the sounds of the instruments and made my heart soar. I could see the smiles on the guys' faces and my band mates were all along the walls giving their support to my new friends. Surprisingly it only took about five times to run through the entire song before we had the perfect recording. For a bunch of guys that were not used to being in a recording studio they certainly didn't show any sign of hesitation.

After the first song was completed we played it back a few times and on the last time we all danced around the studio enjoying hearing 'Keep Holding On' and feeling very satisfied by our work. Binkie and Lester come over and begin to spin me around the room to the beat of the music. 'Boy all of these guys are well built' I think to myself.

We settled back into our work and got the second song done just as quickly. 'When Your Gone' was done in seven takes and the soundboard guys had a bit of fun with that one. We were all laughing and having a great time, by the time we wrapped up it was close to eleven am and we had a chance to look around and see who was in the building. I was able to introduce all of the guys to some executives, but I think they were mostly excited by meeting Pink, Katy Perry, The Black Eyed Peas and Bruno Mars.

By the time we were leaving the building I think the guys were shocked in to silence. "You know their people just like you and me guys. They put their pants on one leg at a time." I snicker.

"Yeah, but their famous. I didn't think that they would be so nice. The tabloids and other press make some of them out to be so stuck up." Explained Vince.

"Well some are, but those that are I choose to ignore." I respond.

"You're nothing like those others. But I have to say the papers were right about you, you are "Hollywood Sweetheart". I don't think that most normal people are as nice as you." Said Ram.

"Well thank you. Now, let's head back to the house and pick up everyone else and head to the beach." I say to them as we head out to the car.

XXXXXX

(Ranger's POV)

I have to say that I have met no one else like her ever. From the first moment that I saw her in Iraq performing with the USO I was lost in those beautiful blue eyes. In just meeting her yesterday I know I am a goner for this woman. I have never felt this way about anyone before, it scares the shit out of me. She seems to be one of the most genuine people I have every met. The conversation flows between us, she answers any questions that you ask her and she knows who she is as a person. She's gorgeous on the outside, but even more beautiful on the inside.

I was totally turned on rubbing lotion on her last night and then my damn phone rang. I wanted to kill the person on the other end, and then to find out that I had to miss the time in the studio for a conference call for work drove me absolutely insane. Ending the phone call and turning back around I saw that Ram had taken my spot with her and was finishing up her lotion and it took everything in me to keep myself under control. Watching her dance with all of the guys was like torture, I never wanted to let her go when I had her in my arms. Unfortunately I don't have any claim on her, but if I have my way that won't be true much longer. Once my men realize that, they better watch what they do with her, or they will all be seeing me on the mats. Well, at least I was able to have a chance to speak with Bobby about his relationship with her. They seemed so close, but he never talked about her at home.

My plan at the beach is to spend as much time with her as possible and let her get to know me.

**So, what do you think? Next comes the Muscle Beach visit with some fun for all the guys. Hehe. To those of you who have reviewed my story thank you so much. This week is crazy and with the issues going on with the reply on your reviews I have not been able to get back to everyone. I wanted to thank everyone of you that lets me know what you think. It really means the world to me that you are enjoying the story. Next week will be a more normal week for me so the updates will be more regular and all reviews will be responded to guaranteed. **


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_(Ranger's POV)_

_I was totally turned on rubbing lotion on her last night and then my damn phone rang. I wanted to kill the person on the other end, and then to find out that I had to miss the time in the studio for a conference call for work drove me absolutely insane. Ending the phone call and turning back around I saw that Ram had taken my spot with her and was finishing up her lotion and it took everything in me to keep myself under control. Watching her dance with all of the guys was like torture, I never wanted to let her go when I had her in my arms. Unfortunately I don't have any claim on her, but if I have my way that won't be true much longer. Once my men realize that, they better watch what they do with her, or they will all be seeing me on the mats. Well, at least I was able to have a chance to speak with Bobby about his relationship with her. They seemed so close, but he never talked about her at home. _

_My plan at the beach is to spend as much time with her as possible and let her get to know me. _

XXXXXX

The drive back to the house was very animated with talk of how they all were excited that they were going to be on a CD. It made me smile to think that they were all so happy with how things turned out, now I couldn't help myself for thinking I was going to really enjoy myself this afternoon. Who wouldn't want to be around a bunch of sexy, muscular, friendly and very flirtatious men. I loved being around these guys, they made you comfortable and safe no matter where you were. I wanted to laugh when I saw that they were all wearing guns even at the studio, but I guess if it made them feel more comfortable then that's what mattered.

When we finally reached the house everyone filed out to get ready. I had a few phone calls I needed to make before we left to set up some activities for all of us. I wanted to call and get dinner reservations and plus I wanted to get the wet suits, surf boards and beach volleyball court reserved for this afternoon. I decided to call Mic and see what he could do for me and let him know I was finally coming down there.

"Hello." Mic answered on the second ring.

"Hey there stranger, how's everything going? You busy?" I asked him.

"Steph, it's great to hear your voice, the only thing better would be to see you in person. Things are going great. We actually have the beginning of the competition taking place this afternoon. How about you?" Mic asked.

"Well I wanted to let you know that I'm coming down there in just a bit with Bobby's and a bunch of his very sexy and very muscular friends. I was planning on stopping by to say hi. Some of them are going to teach me how to surf and we wanted to play some beach volleyball. Would you happen to have any open courts? I also need to find out if I can get some wet suits and surf boards." I respond.

"Absolutely, but it's going to cost you. You ready for what I want this time?" He laughs.

"Sure you name it. This should be interesting." I giggle.

"There's the latest magazine cover being shot here during the competition and I want you to pose in it with a group of guys. We could use the ones from the competition or pick some from the crowd that will gather with you here. Oh, and I need you to wear the smallest black bikini you have. I also have a few for you to try on here if yours isn't skimpy enough." He replies.

"Oh boy. I think I have one small enough for you. Good thing I took grandma with me shopping this last time." I say shaking my head. "But I'm game. We'll be leaving here in about twenty minutes and come straight there. Would you like to join us for dinner tonight? You can bring Leslie if you'd like, Danny and Emma will be there as well as my dad and Uncle Mike."

"Sounds like a lot of fun. Sure we'll both be there. Can't wait to see you later, I gotta get some things set up for you so I'll see you in a bit." Mic says.

"Okay see you in a bit." I say ending the call.

I quickly make dinner reservations for our group which seems to be getting bigger by the minute. I called grandma's cell phone to let her know where we were going and to tell her to be ready for Randy to pick her up shortly. I knew she would want to go with us, I would just have to make her promise to leave these guys alone while we were there, now the guys there for the competition and the crowd that would be fair game for her.

I made my way downstairs to find all the guys waiting for me, as well as my dad and Uncle Mike getting ready to head out and do their own thing. "Okay guys, I made dinner reservations for 8pm and we have a few extra people that will be joining us tonight. Bobby, Mic is bringing Leslie and I though that Emma and Danny could tag a long as well. Randy can you go pick up grandma from Val's house?" At that comment I hear a bunch of groans, but Randy just smiles and nods his head. "We have wet suits and surf boards reserved for today, as well as a volleyball court. Make sure you have a change of clothes for dinner with you; we can all shower over at Mic's place before we head to dinner. Ready?" I ask.

We all head out and I feel like an excited teenager again. The sight of all of these hot men is drool worthy at a minimum, full immediate induced orgasm definitely, we should make some sight at the beach today, I laugh to myself. With two cars we all make it to the beach in good time and once all out of the cars the frenzy began. Paparazzi crowded around us and followed us wherever we went, the crowd of people watching the competition all turned in our direction. I'm normally used to the attention, but it seemed the group of guys that I was with were helping to draw an even bigger crowd. Ram and Vince got out front of us to make a path for us to walk after I told them where we were going. First stop, to see Mic.

As soon as we reached the photo shoot area and crossed the lines the paparazzi and crowd fell away. Mic noticed us right away and came over picking me up and swinging me around in a circle, then putting me down and planting a nice wet kiss on the lips.

"You weren't kidding about muscular and sexy." Mic laughs. I turn to look at them and notice that a few of the guys have slight smiles and a quirked up eyebrow looking at me.

"Nope, I only speak the truth." I giggle. "Mic these are Bobby's friends and co-workers, Ram, Vince, Binkie, Cal, Hal, Lester, Tank and Ranger. Guys this is Mic, he runs the competitions and the magazine this photo shoot is for. He'll be joining us for dinner along with his lovely wife Leslie, who should be around here somewhere." I say to them. Mic shook all of their hands and all got a round of 'nice to meet you'. Bobby and Mic did the man hug thing and talked for a few minutes before Mic came back to me.

"So you ready to get this shoot done?" He smiles at me wickedly. "I have some bikinis in the room for you if you need." He turns to the guys. "Hey any of you interested in being on a magazine cover? Steph agreed to do this as a favor for me." He winks at me with another evil smile, and I just laugh at him. "I need a group of guys that would be willing to stand in their Speedos, which I can provide and do a series of poses holding Steph up across the group." Mic smiles again.

"I'm game." says Ranger looking directly at me with a smile on his face. "Lead the way." The rest of the guys, but Bobby all head toward the dressing area.

"I'm going to go set up our stuff at the volleyball court and get the wetsuits and boards." Bobby calls to us as he walks away.

"What's with him?" Lester asks me.

"He hates photo shoots. It's one of the reasons he hates public appearances, otherwise he would have gone to more award shows with me. No matter how short these things are he hates to have his body scrutinized, especially since getting back from his tours. I tried to tell him that they can airbrush the scars out, but he just won't do it, so I try not to push." I respond.

"I can understand that, he doesn't seem to like a lot of attention at home either." Ranger says from behind me.

"And you do?" I asked Ranger.

"I only like attention from certain people, and none of them are at home, so normally I wouldn't do something like this." He says with a twinkle in his eye. "This is the first photo shoot I'll have done so this should be interesting."

"It won't take that long either, then we can have some real fun." I wink at him and walk away, putting some extra sway in my walk, to take off my tank top and shorts. Once I step back outside I hear the clicking of the cameras in the distance. All the guys are already getting instructions from Mic on what he wants and as soon as they notice me a round of wolf whistles and cat calls begin. I noticed that they all wore similar smiles and had a similar lack of clothing, man those Speedos were small. Yummy.

The poses were set up quickly and the touch ups to the placement of my tiny suit, and do I mean tiny, it could have passed for two pieces of scrap honestly. Leave it to grandma to pick the tiniest one in the store when I got it. I was given a pair of mirrored sunglasses and my hair pulled back in a ponytail. The poses went from laying across all the guys' arms in front of them, to standing at military rest for the guys and me at military rest, but with my arms crossed across my chest, and then I was lifted over their heads. I was even lifted to sit on the shoulders of Lester and Ranger since they were similar heights. There were also some individual shots with myself and each of the guys. It all went very smoothly and took only about 45 minutes to get it all done. I guess it helps when you have guys that are used to following instructions. I can't wait to see how these pictures turn out. After lots of laughs and having the guys hands and other body parts all over me I was hot and my hormones were jumping, man I needed to get in the water to cool down.

"Hey Mic, I want copies of all of those." I say to him as we were walking away. "Ready for some fun guys?"

Before I knew it I was lifted over Ranger's shoulder in a fireman carry and we were jogging down to the beach. He set me down gently as we both laughed and the rest of the guys came running up behind us. Bobby and grandma were already waiting for us. We all ate a quick picnic lunch and then we were ready to surf. The wet suits were an interesting challenge to get on and hugged every curve of the body.

I looked around the beach and noticed that there were a crowd of women not that far from us and they were openly ogling the guys. Can't say that I blame them in the least, these guys were more than drool worthy. Binkie, Vince, Cal and Hal decided to take advantage of some attention and walked over to the group to see if they could get some action. Ram, Lester, Tank, Ranger, Bobby and I all headed out to the water. Ram followed through on teaching me how to get up on a board and with the help of Ranger they were able to get me out on a few waves. It was one of the most freeing experiences of my life, even if I was only riding a one to two foot wave. I definitely have found a new passion. Ram and Ranger were both very patient with me, and they were right that my good balance helped me get used to standing up on the board. I also had the chance to watch Lester, Tank and Bobby on their boards and was absolutely floored at how comfortably they moved with the waves.

Walking onto shore we heard some screaming coming from the competition area and quickly made our way over there. When we arrived I couldn't hold in the laughter that came out of me. Grandma was on the stage in her tiny bikini doing her imitation of the body builders, loose skin and all. A few of the younger guys from the competition looked horrified, and were standing off to the side of the stage, while three guys that I had seen on another trip here were playing along with her. The sight of the four of them up on stage, and all of them in a different pose, then changing after about thirty seconds was hysterical. The crowd was both excited by the guys and horrorstricken by grandma. I cheered her and the guys on bouncing up and down with excitement when I was picked up mid-bounce bridal style by Mic and moved up to the stage.

"What are you doing?" I shrieked. "I'm a mess, and I really don't think this is a good idea Mic."

"This is perfect, look at how many people are here! They're all here to see you; I've never had a turn out like this one before on a Monday. Please go up there?" He asked giving me big puppy dog eyes.

"Alright, what do you want me to do? It looks like they've been pretty entertained by grandma." I agree with reluctance.

"Just let the guys lift you up a few times." He responds.

The paparazzi were clicking away like mad, grandma was in seventh heaven and I was being passed between the three guys on stage with grandma. The younger ones tried to get into the fray, but hey you don't play along with grandma you don't get extra attention from me. These three knew that, maybe the younger ones would learn. I noticed grandma grabbing butts and packages at every opportunity she could, while I was being danced, dipped, lifted and kissed for the cameras. The tabloids should be interesting this week.

**There is still more to come from Muscle Beach. This just seemed like a good point to end it for now. So tell me what you think. **


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ The paparazzi were clicking away like mad, grandma was in seventh heaven and I was being passed between the three guys on stage with grandma. The younger ones tried to get into the fray, but hey you don't play along with grandma you don't get extra attention from me. These three knew that, maybe the younger ones would learn. I noticed grandma grabbing butts and packages at every opportunity she could, while I was being danced, dipped, lifted and kissed for the cameras. The tabloids should be interesting this week._

XXXXXX

Finally able to escape the crowd we headed back to the volleyball court. Everyone was playing except grandma, Ranger and myself. Ranger sat next to me with our legs touching and I could feel the heat radiate off his body.

"Is this normally what your life is like?" Ranger asked.

"When I go out? Yeah pretty much. I just kind of go with the flow. I stopped caring about what other people thought and wrote about me a long time ago, so I just live life to the fullest and everyone else be damned." I responded.

"But the lack of privacy, doesn't it bother you? You always seem to be in the spotlight. You have people trespassing on your property, and cameras in your face non-stop, how do you stand it?" he asked.

"Well, first you get used to it; I've been in the industry since I was eighteen. So I've had time to adjust. Second, I love what I do and the attention goes along with it, so its fine. Third it allows me to help the causes that I believe in; with my connections the foundation has raised multi-millions of dollars to help those in need of assistance. And fourth, I get to travel around the world to some of the most exotic places. I don't see myself slowing down anytime soon. Part of this circus is because of the Awards ceremony this weekend, so things should calm down in a week or two, but they never go away." I stated. "Do you like what you do?"

"Yes, I do. I like the action of being out in the field, but not the paperwork. I like to stay active and keep up my skills. Working in security allows me to continue to protect those that I was protecting while in the military. We're looking to expand again, but we haven't picked a new location yet. We're based on the East Coast right now, but looking into the future would like to expand nationwide. We just need to have the connections to find the staff in the other areas." He replies.

"I can understand that. If you don't like what you do, then what's the point in doing it? I don't want to be miserable all my life, that's the reason that I moved out here right after high school. My mother wanted me to be a housewife and mother, and I wanted to act and sing. She never understood me as a kid and is even less understanding as I've gotten older. Eventually I figure I'll get married and maybe have some kids, but I don't plan on slowing down, and I will never be a stay at home mom, it's just not in me. As soon as I graduated I was out of there and have never been happier about how it all turned out." I smiled at him. He put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his side giving me a kiss on the top of my head.

"Living life on your own terms is something that a lot of people are afraid to do. I have a lot of the same philosophies as you do. I eventually want to get married and maybe have kids, but I'm not willing to sacrifice who I am to do that. No one should have to. That's not what love is. My family has never really understood my desire to be in the military and while I was out of the country there was very little communication from them. Once I was out, then they seemed to come around. I think that it was easier for them to distance themselves from me when there was the chance I could die, so it wouldn't have been so hard on them. The only thing is they will never be as big a part of my life as they were before. They weren't there when I needed them, and I don't think I will ever forget that. Like you the only ones that really even tried to keep in touch were my father and grandmother." He replies.

We sit in silence for a while just watching the game in front of us until we were splashed with a large amount of water from behind. Ranger stiffens and I shriek at the sudden intrusion and cold of the water. I heard laughing in the background and turned around to see Bobby holding a very large bucket that I assume was what held the water. Ranger turned slowly to turn and see who was stupid enough to attack us and Bobby bursts out laughing.

"Oh that was good, gotta be more aware of your surrounding Ranger." Bobby laughs. Ranger goes to get up and go after Bobby but I hold his arm and shake my head no at him. He sits back down and I wink at him.

Leaning over to him I whisper, "I have a better way to get back at him than beating him up. Follow my lead." He nods his head slightly. "Hey smartass," I say looking at Bobby, "you think that was funny huh? How about I offer you a challenge? Do you remember the last time we played Beach Volleyball Bobby?" A smile crosses his face and he nods his head.

"Oh yeah, how could I forget, you bet me you could beat my team and lost. What was it you had to do? Oh that's right," holding his finger to his temple in the thinking position, "you had to do a strip tease for us that night at the local strip club. That was great."

I looked at Ranger and saw his eyebrow raised, I shrugged my shoulder in response. "It wasn't that big of a deal, although the club has asked me to come back several times, apparently it was the busiest night of the clubs history, go figure. Besides I didn't go topless, it was optional." I turn my attention back to Bobby, "So what bet do you want to lay down this time?"

"How about I win you take one of the guys as your date to the Awards instead of me? I'll still go, but I don't want to do the red carpet thing." Bobby responds.

I stared at him in shock and a little bit of hurt honestly. I would have let him off the hook if he had given me a good reason, but this was not what I had expected. For a quick second he looked like he would backtrack but I cut him off, "And if I win you have to mud wrestle with a person of my choice later this week at the location of my choice." I smile at him.

I think I shocked him. "Steph, I..", I saw him gulp.

"Bobby you threw down the challenge. Now you get to deal with the consequences buddy." I say to him with my eyes narrowed at him.

"Fine." He says with his shoulders slightly slumped and retreating to the court.

I turn to Ranger and he speaks up first, "You okay? I could tell his reward wasn't what you expected." He said while tugging me in for a hug.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. It did surprise me, but then again Bobby seems to have diarrhea of the mouth with me. He doesn't think before he speaks with me, and sometimes it hurts, but I know he doesn't mean it. I just would have rather him tell me in person that he didn't want to go with me than make it part of a bet." I took a deep breath before continuing, "I was thinking of finding someone else when I noticed how close he and Emma were the other day. They need to spend time together, it's good for them, but the reason that I asked him to go was because I needed a friend there with me and now I can see that he's not happy that I chose him." I straightened my back, took a calming breath and looked at Ranger, "Let's go kick his ass; I have a few tricks up my sleeve to make sure that his team loses. By the way you're on my side." I say winking at him.

"Whatever you say Babe, I'm all yours." He says with a 200 watt smile and throws his arm around my shoulder as we walk over to the court. "How do you want to play this?" He asks.

"Well, Bobby is always front center when we play, so you need to back me up because I'm going to be upfront on our side. He spikes hard and usually thinks I'm the weakest link. He likes to win; he just doesn't seem to think that I can play dirty like him." I smile at him.

"I can't wait to see what you have planned." He whispers in my ear.

"Alright let's get this game started." yells Lester.

On my side were Ram, Ranger, Vince, Hal and myself. On Bobby's side were Lester, Binkie, Cal, Tank and Bobby. We all took our spots and the game began. At first it seemed that we were evenly matched. Bobby took his normal position at the net and I made sure that I was right there with him which seemed to surprise him. At the first chance to block him Ranger came up closer behind me, I jumped short so he could take the hit and made it look like I was falling down. As I was going down to the ground I reached out and pulled Bobby's swim trunk with me to the ground. Bobby's hands instinctively went to his pants rather than the volleyball. He was standing there naked as the day he was born for the whole beach to see and Ranger made the point for our team. We all erupted into laughter when Bobby quickly picked up his trunks and tied the waist band tightly and glared at me. I just smiled back sweetly.

The game continued with Bobby's team rotating their positions so Bobby wouldn't accidentally lose his pants again. That was alright, I had other plans. Lester was up front now with me with a lecherous grin on his face. After a few points I made my move, Lester went to spike at me and I went with him, only to let my top fall down before he jumped catching his attention. When I jumped my exposed breasts were right at his eye level and I spiked the ball to make the point. Lester stood there in shock while I replaced the tie on my top. I smiled at him and shrugged my shoulder. "Sorry about that Lester, I should know better by now that this bikini shouldn't be used for jumping, there's not much to it." I smile at him, turned around to see my team smiling at me. I winked back at them and turned back around for the next point.

Binkie was the next one on their team to move forward. I smiled inwardly to myself; he was the youngest of the group and seemed to be so innocent in comparison to the others. After two points we went up in the air and all I had to do was jump into him through the net and rub myself on him, I could hear the loud intake of breath on the way up, on the way down I was able to make my nails drag over one of his nipples and he moaned and almost fell onto his butt. Staggering on the sand just inches from where the ball had touched after Ram spiked it Binkie eventually stepped on the volleyball and feel over taking Cal with him. Everyone erupted into fits of laughter; I guess I was right about how innocent he was.

Tank and Cal were the only ones that were left that I hadn't gotten a chance to play with, so naturally they were both up front on the next point. Since the game was all tied up we decided who ever got the next point would win. I mentally rubbed my hands together. Looking back at Vince I nodded my head for him to come up front with me and whispered in his ear once he was there with me. His eyes went wide as I was speaking to him, but his mouth was smiling and eyes were twinkling.

The next play started off normal, but once the ball was back on Bobby's side and being positioned to score Vince and I both dropped to the ground behind Tank and Cal who were turned towards their team, we quickly pulled down both mens' trunks and Vince lifted me back up to spike the ball back to them for the last point. My team was rolling in the sand laughing at the scene in front of us. Bobby's team had been so engrossed in the ball that none of them knew who had pulled down the pants of Cal and Tank, so they couldn't retaliate completely. However there was a slight problem in this, they knew I had something to do with it. The next thing I knew Cal had me over his shoulder and was running towards the water. With me laughing and screaming for him to put me down we were attracting quite a crowd. Once we reached the water Cal kept on walking. As soon as he was waist deep he threw me in. The worst part about this? Well, he managed to snag the straps of my bikini as I went in. So when I came up out of the water I had no suit to cover anything. Not the worst situation I had ever been in, but there were a lot of people around. Now I just needed to figure out how to get something to cover myself up with before I even attempted to walk back to our portion of the beach.

At least it didn't take long for someone to bring me back my bikini. Thank god for Ranger. The other guys were laughing their asses off and my teeth were chattering since it was getting later in the day. Ranger graciously carried me back to our spot on the beach and wrapped me in a towel and was rubbing my back to help warm me up. The rest of the guys were playing one last round of volleyball while I warmed up. Ranger sat behind me, with me between his legs and his arms wrapped around me. I rested my head on his shoulder and just enjoyed the scene of the guys having fun, and was enjoying being in such a warm and strong pair of arms. It was a great way to end our day at the beach.

**So, what do you think? Enough action and teasing? Coming up their trip to Disneyland. Let me know which rides you think should be included. Remember these are big guys. The tea cups may not be the best idea. There will also be more Mrs. Plum. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

**Also Margaret Fowler, you have given me some wonderful ideas for this chapter. Hope you liked how they turned out. **

_Previously…_

_At least it didn't take long for someone to bring me back my bikini. Thank god for Ranger. The other guys were laughing their asses off and my teeth were chattering since it was getting later in the day. Ranger graciously carried me back to our spot on the beach and wrapped me in a towel and was rubbing my back to help warm me up. The rest of the guys were playing one last round of volleyball while I warmed up. Ranger sat behind me, with me between his legs and his arms wrapped around me. I rested my head on his shoulder and just enjoyed the scene of the guys having fun, and was enjoying being in such a warm and strong pair of arms. It was a great way to end our day at the beach. _

XXXXXX

The afternoon of fun in the sun had us all a bit tired, but after getting ready for dinner at Mic's place we were all rearing to go. All the guys were relaxing in the living room when I exited in my halter top sundress in a deep sapphire blue that matched my eyes perfectly. The dress came to mid thigh and clung to all the right places. Emma and Danny had just arrived and were still finishing the greetings when Danny ran over to me giving me a big hug.

"Hey there sweetheart, did you have a good day?" I asked her.

"Yes, I got to do lots of art projects today. They're my favorite, plus we had a new PE teacher that helped us to learn a new game, but I don't understand why throwing a ball at someone is fun. I got hit in the head a few times." She said with disappointment.

"Oh, you played Dodge Ball huh?" She nodded her head at me. "Well, maybe we can teach you a few techniques to get away from those balls. I have a few tricks up my sleeves you know. Just ask these guys. My team took the others down in Beach Volleyball today." I heard a round of laughs in the background.

"You're not teaching her those techniques at this age Steph." Said Bobby.

"Oh please. Like I would teach her those moves at her age, give me a break. I have a full arsenal of trick that you haven't seen. I've always been the queen of distraction, even in elementary school. You just have to know your audience." I toss back at him. "Anyway, are we ready to head out for dinner? I'm starved."

"Lead the way Ms. Distraction." Lester comments.

"Hey, are we going to Disneyland tomorrow?" Danny asks.

"Yes we are. Have you made your list of what you want to go on first? The only one that I require that we go on is Peter Pan. I always wanted to fly, and that ride is my favorite." I say to her.

"I'll think about it tonight and have it done in the morning. I can't wait. I'm so excited Aunt Steph. Is everyone coming with us?" She asks.

"I don't know. We'll ask them when we get to dinner. I know for sure it's you, me your Mom and Uncle Bobby. We'll see if Grandpa Plum and Uncle Mike can come too and any of Bobby's friends that might want to tag along. How does that sound?" I ask her.

"Cool." Danny responds. I give her a hug and look at Emma and see tears welling up in her eyes. I give her a small smile and we all climb in the cars.

A short time later we are sitting at our very large table in a private room at the restaurant and everyone has arrived except for my dad and Uncle Mike. Everyone was laughing and having a great time until my phone rang. Answering without looking at who the caller was I hit the accept button and said hello.

"Stephanie Michelle Plum how could you embarrass me like this. You made the Entertainment news with that episode with the police last night at your house and now they have pictures of you and your top coming off on the beach. How dare you do this to me. You ungrateful child." My mothers' voice comes across the phone.

I catch the attention of those around me and make a motion for them to be quiet and put the phone on speaker. Cutting her rant off I say, "Mother nothing I do is about you, and I don't care that they were able to get that on camera we were having fun. I don't owe you any explanation for anything that goes on." At this moment I see my father and Uncle Mike walk in the room with looks of confusion on their faces. "And by the way I hope you heard that my agent called off your arrangements for Chad attending the awards with me. Chad's agent was also informed that if he attempted to make any arrangements with you in the future that he would be tied up in a lawsuit so big it would seriously hurt not only his financial situation but also his reputation in the business. So don't try anything like that again, because you won't like how it turns out." I look at Emma and then at Danny who looks like she wants to question what's going on. I nod my head towards door to tell Emma to get Danny out of here for a minute; she didn't need to hear this.

"You are nothing but a disappointment with your antics. From the time you were born you have been nothing but a disappointment to me. It's time you grew up and got married. But no, instead you choose to run around like a whore in front of the world. I will not have a daughter that sells herself to any of those male thugs you have been around this week." My mother replies with venom in her voice.

Before I have a chance to respond my father speaks up, "My daughter has never been a disappointment to me. I'm sorry to hear that we don't have the same opinion of her, but you know what Helen, I will no longer listen to you disrespect MY daughter. If anyone is a disappointment it's you. You're her mother, you should love her no matter what, but since you refuse to see her for who she really is, the way I see her, and everyone else sees her you will no longer be part of our lives." I look up at my father in surprise.

"Frank you don't mean that. This is all Stephanie's fault. She's turned you against me. What will everyone at home think?" She questions.

"I don't give a shit what other people think. That's your whole problem, you think of what others will think rather than living your life for yourself. Well Helen, enjoy your life alone, because I won't be going back to Trenton with you, and you'll be served with divorce papers as soon as you return home." my father comments.

"You can't mean that Frank. And I'm not going back to Trenton until after the Awards. We're supposed to go together remember, everyone back home expects me to be there. How will it look for me to not show up?" She whines.

"Well I guess you have a problem then Mother, because your invitation was just revoked. Security won't let you in and I will make sure that none of the press will be interested in speaking with you anytime soon. You've enjoyed the lime light, but have never supported anything I do, so now is your chance to live a normal life back in Trenton, ALONE. I hope that you enjoy it." I respond and hang up the phone.

I look at my dad with tears in my eyes, not for me but for him. "Daddy you didn't have to do that for me. I can handle her; I have been my entire life." I tell him.

"I should have done it a long time ago Pumpkin, I was just stuck in the old ways where you didn't get a divorce, but it needs to be done. Can I use your attorney?" He asks shrugging his shoulders.

"Anything you need Daddy, it's yours you know that. You can stay with me as long as you want." I stand up to give him a hug and a kiss and whisper, "We can talk more about this in private later." He nods in agreement and we all sit down to have dinner. Since everyone was back at the table, to try to cut the tension I asked then, "So, who's up for Disneyland tomorrow? I promise it will be a lot of fun. And the best part is we don't have to wait in the long lines. I usually just have to sign a few autographs to keep the people in line happy so we can ride as a group. That way we don't have to worry about pissing anyone off." I giggle. The group smiles and I heard a round of agreement for everyone that plans to attend. I was even happy to see that my dad and Uncle Mike would be joining us. Danny was bouncing in her seat next to Bobby and Emma.

As dinner went on there were lots of stories being thrown around about the guys and their times on missions and some of their funny antics, stories from college of Emma, Bobby, Mic, and myself, as well as some stories of troubles my dad and Uncle Mike got into when they were younger. Mic decided to speak up about one rather embarrassing story with the group of us that had my cheeks burning bright red.

"Hey Bobby, remember the end of our Fall semester Senior year? When we went out to celebrate the end of term and Steph's first record going platinum?" Mic gets this evil smile on his face. I sat there in shock that he was even bringing this up. Bobby shakes his head yes adamantly.

"When we went to that bar during the week right? The one like Coyote Ugly?" Bobby asks.

"That's the one. Well, Steph and Bobby had a bet that he won and she had to pay up at the bar, but she didn't know exactly what he was going to have her do." At this Mic starts laughing. "When we walked in and Steph saw the dancers on the bar she figured that was what she was going to have to do, so she relaxed and went with the flow at first." Mic laughs some more. "After having a few drinks Bobby finally told her what she had to do and I swear I had never seen her turn red from blushing so fast that we were all wondering exactly what he had her doing. The next thing we knew she was walking over to the bartender and whispering to him. He nodded and smiled at her before she got up on the bar and the next thing we know the music shifts from some country song to "I can't Get No Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones."

Bobby takes over, "She starts dancing and singing the song in front of the whole bar swaying and shaking those hips of hers pointing at me for the first half of the song, then she pulls up one of the bar assistants up on the bar with her. This assistant happened to be another woman by the way, and they start grinding on each other. By the end of the song, not only are they grinding on each other but totally making out in front of everyone. All the men in the bar stopped whatever they were doing, even ignoring their dates, to watch the show. It was so hot, you would have never guessed that it was the first time she had made out with another woman. When the song ended the bartender helped her down and walked her over to our table and made it known that if we couldn't satisfy her that he would be more than happy to take that job on. He layed a big kiss on her while dipping her in front of us before walking away."

"What Bobby and Mic have left out was that because it was still close to the announcement of my record going platinum there was a news crew for one of the Entertainment Channels that caught the whole thing on tape and it played the next night Nationwide." I glare at Bobby and Mic for bringing this topic up. "And I never said it was my first time doing that either." The guys all looked at me with wide eyes at my last comment.

"So, that was why you were doing that? I remember seeing it on the TV that night it aired and was totally shocked, but hey to each his own. I figured you were experimenting." explained my father. "It was quit the talk of the town back home. Many of the young men in our neighborhood were very upset to think that you had 'changed teams' so they said. It just made me laugh." Uncle Mike was just laughing at the whole scenario.

"Any chance well get to see a little girl on girl action while were here Beautiful?" asked Lester.

"Not a chance in hell Lester." I smile at him.

**So, tell me what you think. Was Mrs. Plum too harsh? Should she shut up for a while or make an appearance at the awards unexpectedly? **

**I have the rides for Disneyland set up, now I need to know who you would like Bobby to mud wrestle with. Someone famous? One of the guys? Her grandma? It can even be a group of girls or guys. **

**PM me with any idea you would like to share. Thanks for all the reviews I love them all.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

Previously…

_ "So, that was why you were doing that? I remember seeing it on the TV that night it aired and was totally shocked, but hey to each his own. I figured you were experimenting." explained my father. "It was quit the talk of the town back home. Many of the young men in our neighborhood were very upset to think that you had 'changed teams' so they said. It just made me laugh." Uncle Mike was just laughing at the whole scenario._

_ "Any chance well get to see a little girl on girl action while were here Beautiful?" asked Lester._

_ "Not a chance in hell Lester." I smile at him. _

XXXXXX

I woke up with a start. I realized I was hearing loud squealing in the hallway, which meant that Danny was up and ready for her day at Disneyland. Bobby's arm tightened around my waist as he nuzzled into my neck and groaned.

"Is she always up this early? I mean this is my vacation. I wanted to sleep in a few days at least." Bobby grumbles.

"She's excited Bobby. She doesn't remember going the last time, she was only one at the time. Cut her some slack." At that moment the door to the bedroom flies open and slams against the wall.

Danny charges the bed and jumps up landing on my side straddling me. "Aunt Steph, Uncle Bobby get up, get up, get up. We're going to Disneyland today. Come on, come on, come on." I noticed that she was already dressed and had her shoes on.

"Okay Sweetheart we're getting up. We'll meet you in the kitchen so we can all have breakfast before we go alright?" I say to her.

As she runs for the door she yells back, "Hurry up." and she disappears down the hall. Giggling, I get up and stretch out my legs and back, before I head to the bathroom to complete my morning routine. Bobby joins me shortly after I hope out of the shower and head to the closet to get dressed.

Once Bobby is out of the shower I head back in to do my make up and hair. "Bobby you know why I asked you to go with me on Sunday right?" I asked without looking at him.

"Steph, I'm sorry about yesterday. You know I would do anything for you. I just hate public appearances, they make me uncomfortable. I don't like being looked at by critics." He signs.

I cut him off before he could continue. "I know that, but I was really looking for someone to support me, that I trusted, and loved, but I know this is not what you want to do so don't worry about it, I'll find someone else to go with me." I say as I finish my make up and walk out of the bathroom to head downstairs.

"Steph, I" Bobby tries to get my attention from behind.

"No, don't worry about it, you're off the hook." I say with tears in my eyes walking out of the open bedroom door and walk right into Ranger. "Sorry. I didn't see you there." I give him a watery smile and continue on my way leaving them both behind.

XXXXXX

(Bobby's POV)

"Damn it." I yell as I see her disappear down the hallway heading downstairs. I pick up the nearest thing I can get my hands on and throw it against the wall as hard as I can. "Damn it." I yell again.

"Brown, what's going on? Why did Stephanie look like she was going to cry?" I hear Ranger from the doorway and spin around.

"I just fucking hurt my best friend and the only woman that I've ever told that I love. That's what's going on." I slam my hand into the wall making a nice dent next to the doorway to the bathroom.

"I don't think she'll be happy to see your remodeling to her bedroom if you keep that up. What's going on? How did you hurt her?" Ranger asks full of concern, but I couldn't tell if it was for me or her.

"My dumb ass mouth yesterday and again this morning, I just can't seem to keep my shit together with her. I never have been able to. My mouth gets a case of diarrhea when we talk about anything important and there's a disconnect with my brain. She always holds me to what I say and I know that, but this time I just couldn't suck it up and actually do it. I hurt her bad man, all she asked me to do is support her and I couldn't do that. What kind of friend am I? She never asks me for anything for herself and the one time she does I screw it up." I sit on the bed and put my head in my hands, pulling at my hair. I let out a growl of frustration.

"Bobby, you need to calm down. Your still going with her on Sunday you have time to work this out with her, talk to her, she might understand whatever your feeling." Ranger comments.

"You don't understand, she told me I was off the hook, she won't change her mind. That's just how she is man. I let her down, and I have no one to blame but myself. Now she has to find someone else to go with her, and I know she won't be comfortable with them. She usually takes her grandmother or her father, but her manager was putting pressure on her to take someone else. He actually begged her not to take her grandmother. Did you hear about the Golden Globes? She made her way up to the stage and was showing her new underwear all because she was board." I shook my head at that.

Ranger laughed at grandma's antics, "She is definitely a piece of work. I don't think that I've ever met anyone like her before. Look, lets' go spend some time having fun today. I heard about the last time you were at Disneyland with Danny, don't let that bring you down. Let's show her what a good time we can all have together. This thing with Steph will work out. You'll see. Come on I thought I heard someone earlier excited to get there." He chuckles.

"Thanks man. I'll be down in a minute." I say while I finish getting ready. I watch him walk out the door and head downstairs. I just hope he's right and I didn't just lose Steph forever.

XXXXXX

My contacts at Disneyland had been able to make some arrangements for us for our visit today and I couldn't have been more pleased. We had our own guide that took us to the each ride allowing us to skip the lines and so far the other visitors had been very understanding as long as they got some pictures and autographs. I couldn't wait until later in the afternoon when I had another surprise for Danny, but we were all enjoying the rides. Danny had decided that she wanted to ride on everything in the park she was tall enough to go on, which to her delight was everything in this park. She had also informed us all that everyone had to go on everything with her. That should be interesting! We started off in Tomorrow Land and worked our way into that area. The rockets and Star Tours were a big hit, but when the guys saw the Buzz Lightyear ride they all went nuts. Apparently they are all very competitive.

"Okay men, this ride is a shooting game. Highest score wins. Whoever scores the lowest will owe the highest scorer a debt to be named at the winners' discretion. Understood? Pair up and lets head in." Ranger stated.

I had to laugh at their antics. They were all so serious while listening to Ranger and once dismissed they got these evil looking grins on their faces. I could only imagine what other people thought when they saw us all standing there. I looked at my dad and Uncle Mike and we all burst out laughing as we walked into the ride. I was paired up with Ranger and he slung his arm around my shoulder as we walked in.

"So Babe, you ready to get your butt kicked by some ex-military men? I think your going to owe me a debt when we get off this ride." Ranger says to me.

"Oh, you're that sure of yourself are you? Well we'll just have to see about that." I say poking him in the ribs and laughing.

"I'm looking forward to this one. You know how to shoot Babe?" Ranger asks.

"I guess you'll have to wait and find out Ranger." I reply batting my eyelashes at him and snuggling into his side. Internally laughing I can't wait to see his reaction. He smiles back at me and tightens his grip on my shoulder.

We all climb into the cars for the ride and off we go. Before our ride officially begins I look at him and give him my full on smile then lean in to kiss him good on the lips which seemed to stun him, not what I was going for but, hey if it gives me an advantage so much the better. The game begins before he had a chance to react and we start firing away. I chose to control the angling of the car with the joy stick and kept the car moving back and forth. Aiming for the highest point targets my score was racking up quite nicely. Halfway through with flashing lights, very loud noises and lots of moving targets later I decided to let the ride take control of the movement. The car seemed less jerky that way. It made it easier for me to hit the same target multiple times.

I intentionally ignored our scores and kept firing, until we came upon Zurge. I honestly can't stand that character, so I kept shooting him in the target between the eyes. It was a satisfying feeling. I noticed Ranger was moving all over the place with his shots and I laughed to myself. He really didn't understand the simplest way to play the game. When he looked at our scores at the end of the game I believe that he was in shock. I outscored by more than five hundred thousand points.

By the time we all got off the ride the guys had the biggest smiles on their faces. The pairs all split into groups of the highest scorer in the pairs and then the lowest scorer. The guys all look astonished when I went with the highest scorers. When it was all said and done, I was the winner by more than one hundred thousand points and the guys were shocked to say the least. The lowest scorer was Emma who just shook her head in disbelief. I walked over to her and whispered in her ear what her payment would be and I think I shocked her, but she nodded her head and gave me a questioning look. The only thing I would say out loud to her was "I'll explain why later."

"Alright lets' get going to the next ride." I say.

"Hey how did you get such a high score." asked Lester. "We're all trained military men and you kicked our asses."

"You forget that I have military family, and I know how to play the game. I learned how to shot guns from an early age. My dad and Uncle Mike took me to the range and I have kept up with it. I even own some guns. There are lots of things you don't know about me Lester, but give it time, I'm sure you'll find them out soon enough." I smile at him as we continue to walk along to the next ride.

Space Mountain. One of my favorites, a rollercoaster in the dark and the music that is played during your ride just enhances the speed and enjoyment. Switching partners for this ride I am now paired with Lester and we chose to sit in the very front of all the cars. The close confines of the car were sitting in had our legs touching and once the harnesses were on he places his hand on my thigh and smiled at me. I smile back and cover his hand with my own. The guy is a really big flirt, but so am I. As the ride begins his hand on my leg tightens and pulls mine closer to him. As the coaster whips around the track Lester and I both were unable to hold back our squeals and laughs of delight. It was amazing to feel so free and like a kid again.

As we exited the ride Lester threw me over his shoulder and smacked me on the butt. "Did you enjoy that Steph? I can give you a really fun ride if you want." He says with a lecherous grin and a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"You think you're the man to give me the ride of my life Lester?" I ask as he stopped dead in his tracks. "I don't think you would know what to do with me." I laugh at him.

"Oh yeah?" he then runs down the corridor toward the exit of the building and heads for the water feature right outside the ride with me laughing still on his shoulder. I looked up and saw Ranger running behind us trying to catch up with Ram and Hector on his heals. I knew what would happen next and was very thankful that it was a warm day for March. Lester ran right into the water sprinklers and got us both wet. He set me down in the middle and went off running. Luckily I had seen this shut off earlier so I just waited until the water stopped and then walked back across. I may have been wet, but not as wet as Lester for running through it twice.

"Just wait Lester. You'll get yours. I promise you that." I tell him and I see a look of challenge on his face.

"Bring it on woman. I can take anything you can dish out." He chides.

"You have no idea what you just started Lester. You should be scared." Bobby laughs.

I walked over to Ranger and grabbed his hand and we walked off in the direction of It's a Small World. This was one of the rides Danny had said she wanted to ride more than once. I laughed to myself, 'oh boy the guys have no idea what they are in for now.' Our guide for the park seemed to be so quite, but when I asked her if she was okay she just smiled at me.

"Danny, here's 'It's a Small World'. You divide everyone up how you want them to sit." I tell her. "We have our own boat so have at it kiddo."

"Mommy and Uncle Bobby will sit up front with me. Grandpa, Uncle Mike and Lester in the next one, Tank, Aunt Steph and Ranger in the next row, Hector, Ram and Randy next, Binkie and Vince then last Cal and Hal." Danny says.

"Everyone on." I state, and we all start getting on the boat. Once everyone was on I noticed that we were riding really low. Thinking to myself, 'maybe one boat wasn't such a good idea'. The boat seemed to drag a bit as it tried to move along.

Once the ride started I noticed that we were moving at a much slower pace then the boats in front of us. I figured if the ride operators were willing to let us all on we should be fine. Emma, Danny, Bobby, Lester, Daddy, Uncle Mike and I were all singing along with the music, much to the other guys irritation. Ranger seemed to have this grimace on his face and I could see his leg bouncing, which I took to mean 'get me the hell out of here'. I smiled at him brightly as our boat moved along slowly, that is until the unthinkable happened. The ride stopped. Our boat seemed to hit some kind of bump and we stopped. We all stopped singing and just looked at one another.

It took about a minute before there was an announcement that said there was a malfunction and that everyone should remain seated and the ride would be up and running shortly. However the music and the dancing children kept right on singing. After about ten minutes of nothing happening the guys were really starting to get annoyed, and I couldn't help but start laughing. Here we were this large group of ex-military guys in It's a Small World, stuck in a boat that was probably the cause of the breakdown of the ride. I swear I saw Tank and some of the other guys go to reach for their guns to shot the speakers out so the music would stop. Vince, Binkie, Cal and Hal had their ears covered, it seemed they just couldn't take it any more. My dad and Uncle Mike were laughing along with me and Danny looked like she was in seventh heaven.

After another ten minutes the maintenance crew came around and informed us that there was too much weight in the boat and that some of us needed to get off. They would be more than happy to let those that got off get back on the ride in another boat if they so desired. There seemed to be a mad dash to get off the boat by pretty much all of the guys. Once some of the weight was removed we were floating freely through the rest of the ride and without further incident. The groups that remained on the boat consisted of Emma, Bobby, Danny, Daddy, Uncle Mike, Lester and myself. Lester even shifted to the row with me so I wouldn't be alone. He put his arm around my shoulder and we all sang the rest of the song through the rest of the ride.

Once outside the guys all looked relieved that they were spared any more torture. Ranger looked a little upset that Lester had stayed and had his arm around my shoulder. I walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Hey, ride Matterhorn Mountain with me?" I asked him. I loved having his arms around me and this would be the perfect opportunity since I would be sitting between his legs in the car. I realized that the more time I was spending with him the more comfortable I was getting. I couldn't really explain why, but it seemed natural and I figured why not go with it. He nodded in response and we all walked off in that direction.

**More Disneyland to come, I hope you enjoyed this update, it was a lot of fun to write. Let me know what you think. **

**Alright the next question for you, who should do the asking for her new date to the Awards show? Should she ask? Should the guy offer? Or should she just take her Dad or Uncle Mike? Hmmm, decisions, decisions. PM me with your ideas. **


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

**Also, Sam's-lurker-droid there's a little something special for you here. Hope you like it. **

_Previously…_

_Once outside the guys all looked relieved that they were spared any more torture. Ranger looked a little upset that Lester had stayed and had his arm around my shoulder. I walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Hey, ride Matterhorn Mountain with me?" I asked him. I loved having his arms around me and this would be the perfect opportunity since I would be sitting between his legs in the car. I realized that the more time I was spending with him the more comfortable I was getting. I couldn't really explain why, but it seemed natural and I figured why not go with it. He needed in response and we all walked off in that direction._

XXXXXX

Walking up to the Matterhorn Ranger pulled me into his side and held on to me tightly, I put my arm around his waist and we seemed to walk along in perfect harmony. People were watching us, but it didn't seem to matter to either one of us. Getting on the ride I sat between Ranger's legs and he pulled my back as close to his front as humanly possible and I just relaxed into the embrace. He held me around the waist and rested his chin on my shoulder before the ride took off. I had my arms resting on top of his rested my head on to his shoulder. It had been a really long time since I had felt this comfortable with anyone, and that included Bobby. I could definitely tell that Ranger was enjoying it by what he was sporting in his pants.

Once the ride began the only thing that changed about our position was where our heads were. I didn't want to have my head banging on his collar bone and he didn't want his chin to dig into my shoulder. It was an exciting ride and we both enjoyed it immensely. I think if I have my choice I will be riding all the rides with Ranger the rest of the day.

The day was passing quickly, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. After the Matterhorn we decided to have lunch which I had made special arrangements for. We were going to New Orleans Square and eating in a private apartment above the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Once we all were settled into the room the park manager approached me to let me know my surprise was all set and ready to go. I thanked him and as he left and turned to see very curious eyes looking at me from everyone.

"Well, since I know that one of the best parts of coming to Disneyland is having a meal with the characters, and we can't go to the restaurant where they are for fear of being swarmed, I made arrangements for the characters to come to us. Danny all of your favorites will be coming in shortly." Before I can even finish what I was going to say Danny was squealing in excitement and threw herself at me.

"Oh thank you Aunt Steph. You're the greatest. Thank you, thank you." Danny says excitedly while hugging me.

"My pleasure Sweetheart, I know you don't have an opportunity to live a totally normal life because of me, but I thought this would be a great way for you to be able to experience what other kids you age do. Only you get them all to yourself. Well, you have to share them with the guys, but I don't think they'll mind much." I say smiling at her, then at the guys.

Emma comes over to join Danny and I and gives us a big hug with tears streaming down her face. "Thank you Steph. You made this the perfect visit." She said to me.

"Well, we aren't done yet. We still have lots more ground to cover." I smile at her.

The characters came in three at a time and we were able to take pictures of Danny and some of the guys with all of the characters. Danny couldn't have been happier. I think her favorite was when she got to take a picture with Emma, Bobby and three princesses. Bobby looked uncomfortable, but Danny looked elated. The guys were pretty good sports about the whole thing, with Pooh Bear and his crew, Goofy and Max, of course Mickey and Minnie, Donald and Daisy. My favorite had to be the picture of Ranger with Pooh and Piglet. I took my picture standing between Tinker Bell and Captain Hook. What can I say Peter Pan is my favorite Disney Movie. Unfortunately Tinker Bell didn't have any fairy dust to share with me.

Once all of our lunches were eaten and the pictures were all done we made our way down stairs to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. This time we got smart and split into two different boats. We all started laughing remembering what happened earlier and even our guide was laughing. I was glad to see that she was lightening up a bit.

Once on the ride I asked Emma, "Hey, Johnny told me he was impressed with how real the figures of him were. I can't wait to see them."

"Yeah, he's immortalized in a ride at Disneyland. He'll be forever young." Emma laughs.

"He wishes. Although I have to say for a man his age he still looks about our age. You'd never guess he was fifty." I comment.

The ride moves without any problems and our entire boat, with the exception of Ranger were singing along with the music. I look at him and say, "Hey, you wanted to be in this boat, so that means you have to sing."

He looks at me and raised his eyebrow, "I don't sing Babe."

"Well, then you should have ridden with the other group, we're lively and like to have fun. You don't sing along, you don't get to ride with us next time." I glare at him with a hint of a smile.

It took a minute, but he finally gave in and started singing with us. At least I didn't have to threaten to throw him overboard. Lester just smirked at Ranger while singing. Once everyone got off we went in search of our next ride. Since it was still early in the afternoon I suggested we go to Splash Mountain, so that way if anyone got wet they would have the chance to dry off. We all grouped ourselves again and I found myself with Ranger, Bobby, Emma and Danny. The rest of the guys all grouped themselves and it seemed like the heaviest man was in the back. Trying to be sneaky I whispered to Danny to duck after the flash went off when the big drop came and suggested that she tell the same to Bobby and Emma. When I knew that she had succeeded I caught Bobby and Emma's eye and they both had that mischievous twinkle in their eyes. Once loaded up I turned around to Ranger behind me and reminded him about singing and he just nodded his head.

I loved this ride, but I especially loved the idea of getting Ranger all wet. We were all singing along and close to the drop of the ride when Bobby turned around in front of me whispering, "Are you sure about this?" I just nodded and smiled.

The drop came quickly and the flash went off and the four of us ducked shortly before a wall of water came over our log raft. Once the water stopped falling I sat up and turned around to see Ranger. He had his eyes closed, and water was dripping from every where. His clothes were soaked and he looked like he was trying to calm himself. I couldn't help but laugh out loud. As soon as the sounds escaped from my mouth his eyes popped open and he glared at me. He leaned forward and in a low voice said, "You think this is funny? Just wait Babe, paybacks are a bitch." There was a twinkle in his eye, but I knew he was serious. My hormones started screaming, 'oh boy'. I could only laugh harder.

Apparently the other guys had decided to do the same thing to Tank and Hal, because the three men were all soaked to the bone. We were all having a great time and it showed. After a while we decided that it might be good to head to Fantasyland. When we were thinking up a ride that could get the guys dry the first thing that popped into my mind was the Tea Cups. What better way to get yourself dry than to spin around like you would in a dryer, right? Once we arrived at the ride the guys looked at it with fascination. I couldn't tell what they were thinking until Ram spoke up, "Okay, let's add an extra layer to this one. Group yourselves into pairs. One person will spin the cup while the other sits there unmoving with their eyes open the entire time. The goal is to spin the cup as fast as you can and your partner has to be able to get out of the cup and walk a straight line to the exit without throwing up. We can do this multiple times until we get a winner if needed." He was smiling at his own idea.

'Interesting idea' I thought to myself. This should be interesting. We all made our way to the ride and proceeded to get in our cups. The first thing I thought was odd was the way the guys were sitting. Since I was paired with Ranger, my legs were smaller and it was easier for us to have one of our legs in between the others. It was a tight squeeze, but we managed. Then I looked around again thinking 'how were all of these big guys going to be able to fit together. Well I got my answer, I looked at Cal and Hector together and noticed that one of Hectors Knees was up in his chest and he was as close to the door of the cup as possible. Looking at Lester I noticed that his shoes were on either side of Ram, so it looked like he was trying to prop himself into a position that he wouldn't move from. Tank ended up having to ride by himself since two of them couldn't fit in his cup, but he still looked uncomfortable. I could see his knees above the wheel in the middle. Some of the other guys were looking just as uncomfortable in odd positions. I must not have been the only one thinking this as the crowd in line was laughing at their positions as well.

When the ride started to move I started spotting to prevent myself from getting too dizzy. I noticed Ranger was working the middle wheel rather quickly and was impressed with just how fast he had us spinning. The ripple of his muscles was doing nice things to me. The crowd was cheering us on and I couldn't help but laugh at the whole situation. The ride seemed to go on forever, but when it finally came to a stop I noticed that a few of the guys looked a bit green. Getting out of the tea cup and walking over to the exit gate I saw a few of them bumping into the other tea cups or each other. Thank god there was a garbage can right by the exit gate because both Lester and Hal threw up in the bin, which had the crowd laughing even harder. Ram was smiling at himself for his competition idea, but apparently none of the guys shared his enthusiasm. I smiled at him and gave him a hug and a high five, it seemed he and I were the only ones not affected by the spinning. So much for multiple rounds, oh well. I went over to the crowd that was cheering us on and stood for pictures and signed autographs before they got on their ride and thanked them for waiting. By the time I got back most of them looked back to normal.

"What, you guys can invade small countries, but you can't stand to be spun around in a tea cup?" I giggled. They all groaned at that comment. Guess their not such tough ex military guys after all.

Since we were already in Fantasyland Danny decided we should all ride the fairytale rides, and boy was that a sight to see. All these big ex military guys getting on rides like, Dumbo, Casey Jr., Pinocchio, Snow White, Mr. Toads Wild Ride, and Alice in Wonderland. We received many curious looks from other park visitors, but none seemed willing to approach our group outright. However there were lots of pictures taken from a distance.

It was starting to get dark and I still had yet to ride my favorite ride in the park. Ranger took my hand and led us to the Peter Pan ride. He smiled at me and squeezed my hand letting me know that he knew this was my favorite. Walking on to the ride Ranger got on first pulling me in after him. I noticed he pulled out his phone and asked the ride operator to take a picture of us together before we were off on our ride. I snuggled into him and smiled for the camera. Once I thought the picture was taken I turned my head and kissed him under his jaw line and got even more comfortable.

The ride was smooth and I couldn't have been happier. He held me tight to him the entire ride as we glided along and I could hear him humming along with the music, which for once I wasn't singing with, just enjoying the sounds and the feeling coming from his chest. Before the ride was complete he tilted my head up with one finger by my chin and kissed me gently on the lips, letting all of his feelings into that simple gesture. I could feel affection, and something that I couldn't explain, but from that kiss I could tell that there could be so much more there to explore.

The rest of the evening we spent either, holding hands, arm in arm, or his front to my back. Even though the day had not started out that great, it certainly had improved as the day went on. I don't know when it happened exactly, but I realized that I was actually more comfortable with Ranger than I had been with Bobby in a long time. The last surprise of the evening was our use of the Sleeping Beauty Suite in the Castle to watch the Electric Parade and the fireworks. I looked over at Bobby and Emma both holding up Danny and smiled to myself. Bobby and I needed to talk, but he and Emma needed to even more. I look up to Ranger who was looking down at me.

Ranger asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, right now I am more than fine." I smiled at him.

"I know this morning was tough for you, but can I ask you something?" He asked me.

"You can ask me anything. My life is pretty much an open book." I laugh.

"Would you let me escort you to the Award show on Sunday? I would be more than honored if you allowed me to be there to support you." Ranger asked with a serious look on his face.

"Are you sure you want to do that? There's lots of press involved and you'll get lots of attention that I'm afraid will follow you home." I respond.

"I can deal with the press. I want to do it because I would like to be there for you. I don't know what's going on with us, but I can tell you that I have never felt this way before. I feel completely at ease with you and I want to be able to support you in any way you need it. A shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen or taking you to an awards show that honors you." Ranger replies.

"Thank you for that, I would be honored if you would take me." I say kissing his lips lightly. "I don't know what's going on either, but I honestly feel more comfortable with you that I have with Bobby in a long time. I know he's been through a lot in the last few years and it's changed him, but I don't think that I can help him with that. I think that's something only Emma can do now." We both look over at them.

"I told Emma this morning that her debt to me was for her to go to the Awards show with Bobby as her date. I want him there, but as you heard this morning he wasn't going to be my date." I pause to look up at him, "Are you sure you want to do this? The press will be putting out stories that we are a couple."

"If it allows me to spend more time with you and show the world that we are together then definitely. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I like the idea of us being together. I'm not in a hurry to get married, but from the sounds of it neither are you. We'll take this one step at a time. Is that okay with you?" Ranger asked.

"Yes it is." I smile at him and he gives me one of the most passionate kisses right there on the balcony.

**So what do you think? Corny? Probably some what, but it just happened honest. Coming up next MUD WRESTLING! Oh Yeah. Then the Awards Ceremony on Monday. Hope you enjoyed this one. **


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

"_If it allows me to spend more time with you and show the world that we are together then definitely. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I like the idea of us being together. I'm not in a hurry to get married, but from the sounds of it neither are you. We'll take this one step at a time. Is that okay with you?" Ranger asked._

_ "Yes it is." I smile at him and he gives me one of the most passionate kisses right there on the balcony. _

XXXXXX

(Bobby's POV)

For the first time since I arrived here I woke up alone and hated it. I hated myself for what I had done to my best friend. She wouldn't even talk to me the entire time we were at Disneyland yesterday. I was forced to spend all of my time with Emma. All of the guys were flocking around Steph and it seemed like she was trying to avoid me. I guess that I couldn't blame her; I had no one to blame but myself for my actions.

I decided I needed to get up and get some coffee to get my head in gear for the day. I had no idea what the plan was for today and knew I would need to make an effort to talk to Steph sometime today. I needed to fix things; my world wasn't right without her in it. Making my way downstairs I smelled the coffee before I made it to the kitchen.

Turning the corner I was greeted by Frank and Uncle Mike with nods of their heads and turned to pour myself a cup of coffee. Joining them at the table they immediately jumped into the thick of it. "What's going on with you and Steph? You slept in another room last night and it seemed like you were both avoiding each other yesterday." Commented Uncle Mike.

"When we were at the beach the other day I made a comment without thinking, as usual, but it hurt her and now she won't talk to me. I need to make this right, but I don't know how." I said looking down into my coffee. I couldn't look them in the eye.

"What exactly did you say that upset her?" Asked Frank.

"She made a bet with me and asked me what I wanted and I stupidly said something about having one of the other guys taking her to the Awards show on Sunday." I flinched waiting for their reaction.

Frank sighed, "Bobby, you know why she asked you right? She doesn't trust many people enough to go with her, and she knows that when she goes out in public with men that the tabloids and her mother have her walking down the aisle with that person. She wanted to be comfortable and know that the person she took wouldn't want anything from her. She trusts you." Frank was shaking his head.

"What did she say the last time you did speak with her?" asked Uncle Mike.

"That I was off the hook and she would find someone else to go with." I sighed. "I know that if I push she still won't change her mind. I was hoping she would ask one of the guys to go with her, but I don't know if she is comfortable enough with any of them. I just couldn't do it." I had my head in my hands at this point.

"Well, I guess I can take her since Helen won't be going, but I think she really wanted to take someone else." Frank says looking directly at me. "But what I really don't understand is why you feel you can't take her."

"I can't stand being in the public eye. Ever since John's death I do anything that I can to avoid it. I don't want to know what other people think of me, I hate myself enough as it is. Why should I listen to the opinions of others? I'm to blame for his death. It should have been me in that car, not him. I shouldn't be here, he should." I reply.

"Bobby, that is the stupidest thing I've ever heard." Comes Emma's voice from behind me. "It doesn't matter if you were originally supposed to be there and not him, plans changed, everything happens for a reason. You weren't the one who made the change, that was someone else. You can't blame yourself. I don't blame you."

"Bobby, you need to get past this or you'll never be happy. No one blames you for this, but you. Now instead of being unhappy with yourself you're allowing that to affect your relationship with others. I'm sure Steph isn't the first one that you've hurt, and until you let this go she won't be the last." Says Uncle Mike.

XXXXXX

(Steph's POV)

Walking into my office I knew I had a few phone calls to make and I needed to do them in private. I was going to exact my payback on Bobby tonight and I knew just who I needed to call to get the ball rolling.

"Hello." Answers a familiar voice.

"Hey there, it's Steph. Are you busy?" I asked.

"Never too busy for you, what can I do for you?" asks the voice.

"I have a little bit of payback that I need to take care of tonight. You in?" I asked.

"Absolutely, just tell me when and where and I'll be there." Says the voice with a smile.

We talked for a few more minutes and ironed out the details and before I knew it we were all set. Ending the call I called the owner of the club we would be visiting tonight.

"Back Door Bar, how can I help you?" answered Jim.

"Well, Hello there Jim. It's Stephanie Plum. How are you?" I replied.

"Hey there Steph, it's been a while. You bringing your grannie tonight? I need to stalk up on security if that's the case." Jim laughs.

"Yes, but that's not the main reason I'm calling. You're running your Mud Wrestling tonight right?" I ask him.

"You bet. You gonna play this time?" he sounded amused.

"Not me, but a few friends will. I wanted to see if we could block some time in the pit. I have a surprise guest arriving through the back and the target this time is Bobby." I respond.

"Oh boy what'd he do know? Lose another bet?" Jim laughs.

"That and some other things, I also wanted to let you know so that you could get the word out there on Facebook or any other electronic ads you send out. You can drop me name if you think that would bring in more people. The more the merrier really." I inform him.

"Oh you must be really mad at him for this. What'd he do?" he asked.

"Nothing I'm willing to talk about, but he knows. Can you also reserve a section of tables for about twenty people that I will be bringing with me? A bunch of his friends are here with him and they will want a front row seat for this I'm sure." I say giggling.

"Alright Steph, I will get everything set up. Be here about nine tonight and we will be all set. The doors open about nine thirty so you can come in the Back Door." I hear him snicker at his own joke.

"Jim, don't quite your day job. I'll see you tonight, I can't wait." I laugh. Ending the call I can't stop picturing the night's events. Oh this was going to be so good.

A throat clears from the doorway and I look up to see Ranger standing in jean shorts and a tight blue t-shirt leaning against the door frame looking right at me with a smile on his face. "So who's Jim and what can't you wait for?" he asks.

"A little payback and Bobby's debt is being paid tonight. We get to see Mud Wrestling tonight. I just need to get in touch with one more person. Come on in, close the door and have a seat." Picking up the phone I dial my grandma and put it on speaker phone.

"Hey there baby granddaughter. What's up?" Grandma Mazur asks.

"Hey grandma. Be ready to go to the Back Door tonight. Jim knows your coming and is prepared. You get free reign with the exception of the special guest that I have coming. You have to keep your hands to yourself with this person, understood. I will have Randy pick you up about seven thirty to bring you here for dinner before we go. And don't say anything about it to Bobby got it?" I inform her.

"You bet baby granddaughter. I can't wait. This is going to be good." Came grandma's very happy voice. I could hear her clap her hands together and rubbing them.

"We'll see you tonight grandma." I said.

"See you tonight. Talk to you later." She says and the phone line goes dead.

"What is the Back Door?" Ranger asks me.

With a big smile on my face I reply, "A gay bar that offers Mud Wrestling."

"Remind me to never get on your bad side." Ranger smirks.

XXXXXX

Arriving at the bar all the guys are looking around. I noticed that Bobby was a bit hesitant to walk in the back door, but hey I hadn't told him what was going on and he had never come here before. I don't even know if he knew about this place. Grandma had found it once when she was looking for some action. Since she loves wrestling she saw the ad for Mud Wrestling and had to go. I decided to tag along with her one time and boy was that fun to watch. I was just thankful that I had extra clothes in the back of the car otherwise my interior would have been covered in mud.

As we drove up I noticed the line was about two blocks long to get in already. Walking inside we were greeted by Jim right away. He led us to our tables which were right in front of the ring. "Hey you have quite a crowd waiting to get in already; this must be a popular night for you." I mention to Jim,

"It normally is popular, but that is because of the notices that I sent out today." Jim smiles at me. "So, your guest is already in the back and waiting for you with everything that you requested. You know where to go." He turns to grandma, "Hey there grandma. You ready for some fun?" He asks her.

"You betcha. I'll go with Steph and get ready. This is going to be so fun. It's been a while." Grandma responds and turns to walk away.

Under his breath I hear Jim, "Thank god she's only here every so often." while he shakes his head with a slight smile on his face.

"Hey you enjoyed watching the show just as much as the next person." I teased him as I walked off. I turned and waived to the guys before going in the back.

Walking into the dressing room I was immediately greeted with one of the most beautiful smiles in Hollywood. I walked over to give him a hug and said, "Thanks for doing this Dwayne. Grandma knows to keep her hands off you so no worries there." We both laugh.

"Hey Steph, no problem. I'm glad I could help, plus I haven't mud wrestled in a long time. I'm looking forward to it. However that fact that this place is a gay bar makes me wonder about where you spend your time." Dwayne laughs at me.

"Well, actually grandma found this place and we've been here a few times. Jim's a good guy and was more than willing to accommodate us on short notice since I let him get the word out I would be here." I reply.

"Perfect. Any chance I could get you in the ring with me?" Dwayne asks wiggling his eye brows.

"Nope. This is all Bobby's show. By the way I love the costumes you picked out." Holding up the Tarzan loincloth for him that would barely cover his package and looking at it. Then looking at Bobby's costume, Jane jungle dress and started laughing with that mental picture. "Oh he will not be happy about this. Good!" I smile evilly.

"Grandma you get a go at Bobby as soon as Dwayne's done. You can do anything you want to him tonight. I'll see you both out there. Call my cell if you need anything. Grandma remember what we talked about. Keep your hands off Dwayne." I reminded her.

"Yeah, yeah, ruin all my fun." Dwayne and I both laugh at her before I walk out the door.

The bar was now open and the crowd was filing in quickly. I noticed that there were a group of men standing near my tables and they were ogling my friends. I couldn't help but laugh. One of the men even had a hand on Ranger's shoulder trying to get his attention. As I walked closer to the table to heard the man say to Ranger, "Hey I can show you a really good time man. You don't need these other dudes around."

Ranger just simply took the guys hand off his shoulder and responded with a 'no'. As soon as I walked over the guys from my group visibly relaxed. The bar patrons were staring at me. I walked over and sat in Ranger's lap, giving him a kiss on the lips, and he put his arms around my waist.

Looking at the men standing behind him I said, "Sorry boys this ones taken."

Ranger smiles at me a bright 200 watt smile, and the bar patrons sate at me with fish mouths. Stammering they respond, "Y-Y-Your Stephanie P-Plum. Holy shit. I thought the notice was a fake. Wow." replies one guy.

"Alive and in the flesh. Hope you don't mind keeping your hands off this one. I don't share well." I smile at them. Ranger tightens his arms around me and places a kiss just below my ear.

"What about the rest of them?" Another guy asks.

I turn to look at the guys and see the slight shake of the head from each in attendance. "You'll have to ask them. But if they tell you to back off you will, understood?" All the guys standing around us nod.

A little while later we are all sitting at our tables drinking beer when Jim comes over the sound system. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a big surprise for your viewing pleasure this evening, but first I need Robert Brown to join me here in the back and the show will be starting in five minutes." Bobby just looks wide eyed at me.

"Hey there, pay up time." I tell him. He glares at me before he gets up and walks in the back.

A few minutes later Jim comes back over the sounds system. "Ladies and gentlemen, a friend of mine has arranged for some extra special contestants this evening in our Mud Pit. You all know and love her for her work on the big screen and for her music. Thanks to Stephanie Plum our main attraction for this evening consists of two very good looking, very physically fit male specimen, one also from the big screen, and the other from the military. Please give a huge round of applause for Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson as our Tarzan." The volume in the bar was ear shattering as he walked out and climbed into the pit and waved to everyone. Once the applause died down, "And another huge round of applause for Bobby Brown as our Jane." The volume once again was ear shattering while Bobby stepped into the pit with his loincloth bra and skirt and had a black shoulder length wig on his head. Bobby did a quick wave to the crowd with absolutely no enthusiasm.

I couldn't hold back the laughs, my side was hurting so bad from the sheer force of them. After explaining the rules of the wrestling match to the crowd the two men were facing off against each other. The cheering from the crowd was tremendous. I couldn't tell who they wanted to win more Dwayne or Bobby. The match went on for quite a while. Both men were covered from head to toe. At some point Bobby's wig came off as well as the bra that he was wearing. The slickness of the mud made it difficult for either men to get too good a hold on one another, but neither one was giving up. Both of them had been on the bottom with their face in the mud and both had been straddling the other. The more I was watching this show of muscle and mud the more turned on I was getting.

Finally after about thirty minutes both men were breathing hard, but it was Dwayne's knowledge of wrestling that won him the match, he was able to catch Bobby behind the knee and drop him while he landed on top of him pinning both arms above his head. What hot sight that was! I had to fan myself to help cool myself down. The match was called and Dwayne was announced the winner. As Dwayne was ready to step out of the pit, grandma climbed through and went straight after Bobby much to his surprise. Her hands were everywhere. He was trying to scramble around the pit to keep her away from him, but the mud was tripping him up. I noticed that she was able to get a good grip on his butt before he was able to escape her grasp again. She was also able to get in a few other good gropes when she had him cornered as well.

The whole bar was cheering on grandma and her frisky hands for the next twenty minutes. Dwayne had disappeared, I was assuming to get changed before joining us for some drinks. Out of no where I was grabbed out of Ranger's lap and thrown over a 'Rock' hard shoulder. I looked up at Ranger and he was following closely behind, but wasn't able to get me free. Dwayne slapped me on the butt before he said, "You friend wanted you in the action as well. I figured it would be fun to get you in there as well, so her we go." He pulled off my shoes handing them to Ranger who looked unsure of what he should do. I shrugged my shoulders at him while Dwayne climbed in the pit with me still on his shoulder.

Before I was placed in the mud Jim's voice came over the sound system again, "Oh look here, I guess that Ms. Plum couldn't stand to be left out this evening. Would you like to say anything to our crowd this evening?" holding the mic up to me.

"You better have your cameras handy because you will never see this in person again." Was my only comment, which received cheers and laughter in response. At that I was dropped in the mud pit and Dwayne tried to retreat out of the pit. Shaking my head I grabbed his arm and was able to catch him off balance with a leg sweep and he went down on his back. The smile on his face was blinding. He quickly grabbed at my leg which I was able to back away from, but was tackled behind from Bobby. We went down face first into the mud and rolled to the side. I grabbed a fist full of mud and threw it at Dwayne who was now stalking us with grandma. I saw them both look at each other and wink. The next thing I knew there were limbs flying every where. I was able to tackle Bobby in his middle at one point letting grandma straddle him. Dwayne licked me up from behind again and lifted me up over his head and letting me fall into his arms before dropping back into the mud without hurting either of us. Bobby was still trying to escape grandma when I was able to get free of Dwayne. We both looked at Bobby and grandma and started laughing hysterically bent over in half clutching our sides.

Finally worn out after twenty minutes in the mud pit Dwayne and I stood at the lines of the pit and watched grandma pin Bobby and win her round. It was a great sight to see and the bar was cheering grandma on. Bobby, grandma, Dwayne and myself were all covered in mud and the guys were all smiling from ear to ear. I guess they enjoyed the show.

**So, what did you think? I couldn't resist Steph getting dirty. At least it wasn't garbage. Well the Awards show is up next for Monday. It will take a couple of days before it is complete, so expect it to go on thru probably Wednesday. A lot will be taking place. Have a great weekend everyone**.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_Finally worn out after twenty minutes in the mud pit Dwayne and I stood at the lines of the pit and watched grandma pin Bobby and win her round. It was a great sight to see and the bar was cheering grandma on. Bobby, grandma, Dwayne and myself were all covered in mud and the guys were all smiling from ear to ear. I guess they enjoyed the show. _

XXXXXX

The rest of the week had gone by quickly. Due to all of the activities we had already participated in the paparazzi were swarming like bees, so we decided to try to keep it a little more low key up until the Sunday. Besides I had a lot to do to get ready for the Awards, not to mention that I had been chosen as one of Barbara Walter's ten most fascinating people. So I also had an interview that took place during the week. Ranger had accompanied me to the studio for the interview and looked on in fascination as we talked about my life and work. I took the opportunity to promote my Foundation and the importance of the USO. We talked about my family, but I had prearranged with Barbara not to ask any questions about my mother, because I would not be answering them. Ranger seemed to be in awe when I introduced him to Barbara, for me it was just another day, and another interview.

Arriving home the day of my interview the gate was nearly impossible to get through because of the number of paparazzi. I had to call the police to make sure we could get in and out if we needed to. I don't really understand what they are so fascinated with, but to each his own I suppose. There were racks and racks of dresses that had arrived so that I could pick my dress for the awards. All the guys were excited and thought they would get to see it ahead of time, that is until I told them 'no way, I wanted it to be a surprise.' I also had a surprise for each of them, I had requested a tux to be delivered for each of them for the awards and then they would be able to keep it. The dresses were taken up to my bedroom, Emma and I made our way to get started on the elimination process. We made it through about half of them without even having to try any on.

"Some of these designs are just awful. How would they expect anyone to wear these things?" asked Emma.

"Well, I guess art is subjective, but I will not be wearing anything that shows this much skin to the Oscars. I mean come on; this one wouldn't even cover my chest. The button would fall right below my naval. Good God, if I bent over I would fall out of my dress. Sorry, but I am not interested in flashing everyone, plus I hate the color. Hot pink just doesn't work for me." I say to Emma. The dress in the front was almost non existent. It had a diamond incrusted button holding the front closed at the bottom of the V which would have shown my belly button and the bottom of the dress was an upside down V that started just below the crotch, and I do mean just be low. The only thing holding the back together was a string of hot pink fabric that went across the shoulders. The back was a V as well that went down to the top of the butt, and the length was floor length in the back. Shaking my head I place the dress, or I guess scrap was more like it, back on the rack and kept looking.

After about two hours of trying dresses on we finally found 'the dress'. It was from a wedding line by Maggie Sottero, and was in a Deep Sapphire blue. The dress was elegant, but modern and clung to the curves of my body perfectly. It was a strapless dress the offered a jewel incrusted halter style strap and the jewel continued down the neckline between my breasts. There was a small train to the back of the dress that flowed nicely without being too dramatic. It was perfect, and with the jewelry that Cartier had sent over, diamond and sapphire dangle earrings and a matching bracelet, the look would be complete without being too much. I had planned to wear my hair down in soft curls around my face and have my makeup done professionally here at the house.

"That's the one Steph. It's gorgeous. You look like a dream." Emma said with tears in her eyes.

"I think your right. This is the one." I say with a smile on my face. "Now we need to find you one." I say hanging up the dress on the hanger.

"No I can't wear these. The designers sent them over for you not me." Emma tried to argue.

"They sent the over for me to use, yes. But, if you see one that you like, they will be more than happy to have you wear it. You will be in pictures too you know. You deserve to be pampered too Emma, not just me. You're my best friend and I want you with me." I replied.

"But I already chose a dress. And I don't have the figure for half of these dresses." Emma explains.

"Nonsense, at least try some on, if you find one you like you can use that one, if not you can use the dress that you already bought. Let me make you a princess for the day. Please?" I ask her.

"Alright, but I am pretty sure that I won't find anything in here." Emma replies. "Are you sure you're okay with what is going on with Bobby and I?" Emma asks.

I looked at her in surprise. "Why wouldn't I be? I get to see my two best friends in the world happy. And if that means they are together so much the better. You can support each other Emma. You both understand where the other person is coming from. You can offer Bobby something that I never could. He knew that I didn't blame him for John's death, but I wasn't his wife, John's other half. You can offer him absolution for what he feels is his fault. Bobby loves you Emma, I think he has for a long time, he just didn't know what to do about it. I know Bobby loves me too, and I will always love him, but we had decided long ago that we couldn't be what the other needed, you know that." I say to her looking her straight in the eye.

"But you two have been together ever since you met." Emma comments. "How can this be okay with you? I don't understand."

I grab Emma hand and walk her over to the bed so we can sit down and talk. "Honey, I want you both to be happy. If being together is what that takes I will be by both your sides cheering you on and be the shoulder to lean on when you need it. You want me to be happy right?" I ask her and get a nod from her in return. "Then follow your heart. You being happy is what's important to me. You are not taking anything away from me Emma. You and Bobby getting together is wonderful. You know he isn't comfortable being in the spotlight and I'm not willing to change my life so that we can be together. Bobby is my friend and he will always be there for me, but you will be the one to love him and wake up with him every morning if that is what you want. He can be there for you and Danny, just like I am; only you get more benefits from him than you can from me." I say with a smile. Emma's face turns a slight shade of pink.

"You know I haven't been with anyone since John. I don't know what to do anymore." She whispers.

"Just take it one step at a time. Bobby won't rush you. Trust him like I do. He won't let you down." I say to her.

She looks up at me, "You mean like he did to you?" she asks.

I take a deep breath, "No he won't, but we'll eventually work things out. Things may have worked out for the best anyway. Ranger doesn't mind the spotlight, and he seems to understand where I am coming from. I can't explain it, but I feel totally at ease when he is with me. I've never had that feeling before, not even with Bobby. It's kind of scary actually, but I'm willing to see where it goes. Life is to short not to."

"But they both live in New Jersey. How can we make a long distance relationship work?" Emma asks.

"Right now by enjoying the time they are here. Don't forget we will be going to New Jersey in June for the concert and then we will be in New York for the musical for six weeks during the summer. We'll get to see them a lot then, don't worry about it. It will all work out somehow." I say with a smile giving her a hug.

After an hour we had found a dress for Emma and we ready to send al the others back. The guys were very boisterous downstairs when their tuxes arrived. I walked down and explained what the plan was.

"I see that you have found your surprise." I say giggling at the looks on their faces. Some looked on him horror while others looked like kids in a candy store. "Well there is a reason that these tuxedos are here. You are ALL coming with us on Sunday to the awards. You will be sitting in the section as my family." At that comment I get a lot of questioning looks. "I consider you family now, not just my friends. You will be there with my father, grandma, Uncle Mike, Emma and Bobby, and my sister Val. Everything has already been arranged, once the awards are done you will be joining me at the after parties where you can meet as many or as few stars as you like. But be prepared, you will be fawned over and groped by some of those in attendance, but let me tell you, you WILL enjoy it. The parties usually go pretty late, but they are well worth it. And yes, my grandma will be there also." They all groan at that.

"Are you sure you want us there?" asks Cal.

"Why wouldn't I?" I ask him.

"Well." He pauses. "Look at us. We aren't your typical crowd." Cal explains.

"I don't know what you mean by typical crowd, but haven't we had fun this week out in public with lots of cameras around us?" I ask looking at all of them. I get lots of nods in response. "If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm not the typical Hollywood starlet. I don't judge others, I hang out with people I like and I make my own decisions. If others don't like it or approve, Too Bad, that's their problem, not mine. I want you there and would be honored if you would be there to support me."

Huge smiles cross their faces and I found myself flying through the room being handed to each of the guys before being placed in front of Ranger and receiving a bone melting kiss.

Hal is the next to speak, "Thanks for everything Steph. No one has ever just accepted us for who we are. In a lot of cases not even our own families."

That brought tears to my eyes. "We are more a like than you know Hal. More than you know." I walked over to him and gave him a big hug and just held him.

XXXXXX

Sunday morning came quickly and the house seemed like a busy hive in the middle of spring with all the comings and goings of the make up artist, hair dresser, Masseur, manicurist and my manager.

I had written out my acceptance speech and run it by him as it was not a typical thanks to everyone who helped me speech. I just wanted to make sure that I had everything in it that I wanted to say and for someone to tell me what they thought. I think it turned out great and he seemed to agree.

Slipping into my dress Emma zipped me up and helped to arrange my hair before she left to go get in the limo that was taking her and the guys to the theatre.

"You look stunning Steph. I'm so proud of you for what you've accomplished. No matter what happens this evening always remember that I love and accept you for who you are." She gives me a quick little hug and I nod and smile at her in response afraid to say anything. A few minute later my father and Uncle Mike enter the room.

"Pumpkin you're gorgeous. You'll knock their socks off today. I love you." Says Daddy. "Don't forget to enjoy yourself tonight alright. I'm so proud of you Steph." He gives me a quick kiss on the forehead and walks out of the room with tears in his eyes.

Uncle Mike spoke next taking my hands in his, "You've some a long way kiddo. You belong here you know. No matter what anyone else tells you, you have made us all proud and done it in your own way. You made up your mind to fly and you've accomplished it. Thank you for letting me be a part of this journey with you." He gives my hands a squeeze and winks at me before walking out the door.

I took a few minutes to catch my breath and to make sure that my make up wasn't smudged from the few tears that had managed to escape. Once I was ready I walked down the stairs to find Ranger patiently waiting for me at the bottom. When he looked up at me and our eyes met I realized that this was going to be a great start to our relationship. His eyes were the darkest I had seen them and he looked beyond handsome in the tux. I would say God like and it still wouldn't be enough. He took my hand for the last few steps and once I reached the bottom he kissed it.

"You look absolutely ravishing. No one will look as beautiful as you tonight. Thank you for letting me the one to escort you." He says to me never taking he eyes from mine.

"You don't look so bad yourself Ranger." I smile at him. "Thank you for being willing to take me. I know this isn't the usual first date, but what a way to start things huh?" I giggle at him and he laughs with me.

"I have a feeling things will be very interesting where you are involved Babe." He smiles even bigger. "Are you ready to go? Your Fans await you." He offers his arm and I take it and he walks me out to the limo sitting out in front of the steps.

The ride to the Kodak theatre was a smooth one with light conversation. Ranger asked what he should do on the red carpet and I explained how things normally worked. Before we knew it we were pulling up right in front of the theatre and it was our turn to get out. He gave me a soft kiss on the lips before he opened the door and reminded me 'I'll be right here for you, I'm not going anywhere' while looking right into my eyes.

Ranger opened the door and stepped out. I took a few deep breaths to get myself ready and he offered me his hand in assistance to get out of the car. I took it and was ready to get the show on the road.

**Yep, this is where we leave off today. Oh to have Ranger on your arm at the Oscars. Yum. So let me know what you think. There is still lots more to come at the awards show. Let me know what you think should happen at the After Parties. PM me with any of your dreams and desires. I hope that you enjoyed this update, more to come tomorrow. **


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_The ride to the Kodak theatre was a smooth one with light conversation. Ranger asked what he should do on the red carpet and I explained how things normally worked. Before we knew it we were pulling up right in front of the theatre and it was our turn to get out. He gave me a soft kiss on the lips before he opened the door and reminded me 'I'll be right here for you, I'm not going anywhere' while looking right into my eyes. _

_Ranger opened the door and stepped out. I took a few deep breaths to get myself ready and he offered me his hand in assistance to get out of the car. I took it and was ready to get the show on the road. _

XXXXXX

The sounds coming into the car were loud and you could hear the crowd going will with excitement. I'd experienced this before, but as soon as I emerged from the car and had a chance to look around the flashes of the cameras were going crazy. I took a second to fix my dress before moving onto the red carpet. Standing back up Ranger offered me his arm which I accepted and he smiled at me with his 200 watt smile.

Before we took a step he placed a small kiss to my lips and told me "I'm right here with you, for you, whatever you need." I couldn't help but smile back at him and give him a kiss of my own. I could hear all the cameras going wild.

"Oh boy, we just started something." I whispered to him with a smile. His only response was 'Good'.

We proceeded to walk down the carpet and I could hear my name being called over and over. Stopping at several points on the carpet as usual to allow for pictures to be taken of me individually, Ranger easily stepped back for me to work the carpet alone. When I was ready he was right there at my side with his arm ready for me. It was amazing to have the support of someone that was not afraid to allow me to do my thing, he did exactly what we had discussed and followed through on what he had said. He was there for me! He wasn't there to be in the publics eye, he was there as my support system.

Proceeding down the carpet we were coming into the interview area and I noticed that many of the camera crews were already pointed in our direction. The first stop on our trip threw the interviews was ET (Entertainment Tonight). I was congratulated for my nomination and asked about my dress, the normal questions. Then before I knew it I was asked about my week.

"So it seems that you have had a really busy week Stephanie. What made you decide to go to the 'Back Door' and Mud Wrestle?" asked Mary Hart.

I was shocked to say the least. I would have expected a more appropriate question for the red carpet. "Well, having a group of friends in town requires being willing to show them the sites. Mud wrestling just came up in a conversation and there we were. It's a lot of fun you should try it some time." I smiled at her and noticed that her face was wearing a shocked expression. "It's really good for the skin too you know?"

She simply nodded her head in agreement and that was the end of that interview. Ranger and I made our way a bit further in and were stopped at Access Hollywood. The same standard questions were asked and I appreciated Mario's professionalism.

"Stephanie, you were absolutely wonderful in your performance. Your portrayal of Sarah, the widow of a soldier whose true reason for her husband's death was covered up by the government, was awe inspiring. How did you prepare for your role?" Mario asked.

"Well filming for this movie started shortly after by brother in law passed away. I also have a very close friend that lost her husband in the line of duty for our country. The part of the grieving widow was not something that I haven't seen before. On a regular basis through my Foundation I come across widows or widowers and can see the pain that they go through. As for the circumstances of the death being covered up, I channeled my anger. I put myself in Sarah's shoes and thought what I would do if my husband or any of my loved one's had been killed and we found out that the reason we were given was false. I would stop at nothing to make sure not only that I knew the truth, but those responsible would get what they truly deserved." I replied.

"The John Mitchell Foundation that you mentioned was organized and set up by you. What is it that this foundation does exactly?" Mario asked.

"We are there to help those families of soldiers that have been killed or injured while serving our country. We offer training, some financial assistance, child care assistance, and counseling for the entire family. We also offer counseling, training and job placement with soldiers that have returned from combat and are unable to continue with their military career. When a friend of mine lost her husband I found that the assistance offered to families was, in my opinion no where near what they should receive. Over the past three or four years we have brought in multi-million dollars to help those families that need it most. I come from a family with a lot of military background, and many of my closest friends are either current of former military, so this cause is very close to my heart."

"It's a wonderful cause and I hear you have a benefit concert coming up shortly for it, is that right?" Mario asked.

"Yes thank you. The first week of June in Trenton, New Jersey, my home town, will be a benefit concert where there will be a split in the proceeds between 'The John Mitchell Foundation' and the USO. Plus there is also a CD that will be released for sale in the next month that has several different artists on it where all the proceeds will be split up and going to the Foundation and USO as well." I inform him.

"Well, good luck to you tonight Stephanie, and thank you for speaking with us today." Mario says.

"My pleasure." I say with a smile and Ranger appeared at my side and we continued on.

Oddly enough, the next guy that we started to speak with the intern from the Jay Leno show 'Ross'. The guy is just beyond strange. I decided to have a bit of fun with this one and kept Ranger with me. Usually the guy makes you sing or say something really stupid.

"Stephanie!" yelled Ross the intern. "Stephanie, Stephanie, please come talk to me." I noticed he was jumping up and down in place waving his arms around trying to get my attention. As we walked over Ranger seemed to stiffen a bit. "Oh thank god you stopped. I wasn't sure what would have done if you passed me by. You're my favorite. I love you. But I have to say," he waved his hand toward Ranger, "I love to look at him. He is just too yummy not to!"

Ranger stiffened even more and grabbed on to my arm tighter. I giggled and responded, "I would have to agree with you Ross, I love looking at him myself. Sometimes it's hard to look away." I smiled up at him and he seemed to relax a bit.

Turning back to me, Ross shook his head as if to clear it, "How do you do it? You constantly have hot men around you. How do you function?" Ross asks.

"It's not easy, I'll admit, but there are better things to do with them than just look if you know what I mean?" I replied with a wink at Ross.

"Oh, oh, oh, tell me honey. Tell me all about it I want to know." Ross bounces happily.

I look up at Ranger and notice the eyebrow is up. "Well now Ross what would be the fun in sharing those details. Don't you want to find out for yourself?" At that comment both of Ranger's eyebrows shoot up and he stiffens next to me. I couldn't help but laugh at that. I turn back to Ross and said, "However, this one is spoken for, so you need to go find another one. I don't share." Ranger then wraps his arm around my waist and gives me a gentle kiss on the lips then smiles at me. He knew I was staking my claim and didn't seem to have any issue with it. Good.

"Honey, I can't blame you there. I wouldn't let that hot thing go if I got my hands on him either. But can you introduce me to any of your other hotties. Maybe they would be up for a test spin." He asks.

"Sure thing." I nod my head at him.

"Hey can you sign my shirt for me? And then say hi to everyone at the Tonight Show with me?" He hands me a pen and I sign as he asked

Turning to the camera with Ross I wave and say, "Hello there Tonight Show. And to you Jay, I challenge you to a race at the speedway." I say with a smile.

We said our good byes and he squealed like a little kid and clapped his hands in glee when I gave him a kiss on the cheek. Ranger and I just smiled at each other as we walked on. The crowd was at an almost deafening level as we made it to our final interview. A local radio show that I had gone to sit in on their program one time, but this interviewer was different. The interview started off with the normal questions, but then turned to my mother.

"Stephanie, how is your relationship with your mother?" the guy asked.

I narrowed my eyes at the guy for his question and he had the nerve to smirk. "What are you referring to?" I asked him.

"Well, there have been reports that she had arranged for you to attend with the co-star from your most recent movie and yet you are here with someone else that until recently have not been seen with before. Can you explain?" He asked.

"Not that I think it is any of your business, but the gentleman that I'm attending with is very dear to me. How or when I met him is not public knowledge, nor should it matter. What matters is that we are together. As for my mother, she has not had any say in my life since I left home to attend college. Any rumors that she has made arrangements on my behalf are just that, Rumors. I have no intention of doing anything just because my mother arranges it. Now if you'll excuse us we have to get to our seats." I turn to make my way to Ranger and there is a loud commotion behind me. I see Ranger looking past me and beginning to move closer to me. I go to turn around to see what the problem is when Ranger pulls me further away from the rail and behind him using his body to shield me from the man that apparently ran through the crowd pushing anyone out of his way in an attempt to get over the rail. Security moves to block the guys approach, but he was able to break through anyway. Using the rail to vault himself up and towards me, screaming loudly, 'Stephanie marry me, we belong together', I was moved further away from the scene by Ranger and then he turned to catch the guy as he landed on the ground, and Ranger immediately had him laying on his stomach with his hands behind his back, without even breaking a sweat. The unknown fan was struggling to get out of Ranger's grasp still when event security made it over to them and were able to quickly remove the overzealous fan.

I must have had a shocked look on my face when Ranger stood up, because he was quickly standing in front of me to make sure I was alright. I was wrapped up in his arms, pressed tightly to his chest for a minute before I was able to get my pulse under control. As soon as I was able to calm myself I looked up at him with a weak smile and I could see worry in his face.

"Are you alright?" He asked me still looking at me. "I told you I would be here for you."

"I'm fine. It's just that nothing has ever happened like that at one of these events before." I said nodding to him. "Thank you for taking care of me." I wove me hands behind his neck and gently pulled him down for a kiss, while the cameras were going off like crazy and the interviewers were going nuts trying to get our attention. As far as I was concerned they didn't exists in that moment, only Ranger and I. I rested my head on his shoulder for a minute before standing upright.

"We should get inside, otherwise they'll expect us to answer more questions." He suggested.

I nod my head in agreement and he offers me his arm which I quickly take and we walk into the Theatre. I noticed that Ranger took his cell phone out and looked at it. He showed me the text message. 'We miss all the fun' from Lester. I guess they had heard about the incident already.

**Alright, so some action on the Red Carpet with Ranger to the rescue or course, next up the Awards. So, any ideas on what trouble Grandma and Lester should get into at the after party? **


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

"_I'm fine. It's just that nothing has ever happened like that at one of these events before." I said nodding to him. "Thank you for taking care of me." I wove me hands behind his neck and gently pulled him down for a kiss, while the cameras were going off like crazy and the interviewers were going nuts trying to get our attention. As far as I was concerned they didn't exists in that moment, only Ranger and I. I rested my head on his shoulder for a minute before standing upright. _

_ "We should get inside, otherwise they'll expect us to answer more questions." He suggested. _

_ I nod my head in agreement and he offers me his arm which I quickly take and we walk into the Theatre. I noticed that Ranger took his cell phone out and looked at it. He showed me the text message. 'We miss all the fun' from Lester. I guess they had heard about the incident already. _

XXXXXX

We made our way to our seats in the second row where the main crew of my movie **Hidden Truths** was located as well. I made sure to introduce Ranger to everyone and I noticed a few of the wives eyes glaze over at his presence. I giggled internally, but could completely understand their reaction. Ranger seemed to fit in with this crowd fairly comfortably. He didn't talk much, which seemed to be the norm for him, but he wasn't stiff and he did ask questions and answer some when he had to. As we stood around he had his hand resting on my lower back the entire time, only removing it to shake someone's hand that he was introduced to.

Once the theatre was almost completely filled and the show was about to start I looked up to the balcony where the guys and my family were sitting. I was able to arrange for them to have one of the balconies closest to the stage. It was the only way to get such a large group to fit in one location. I noticed my Dad, Grandma, Uncle Mike, Val, Emma and Bobby were all in the first row at the rail and all wore the biggest smiles possible. Thinking to myself 'their faces are going to hurt tomorrow for sure'. I noticed that all the guys were looking around taking it all in. They certainly were a sight, all in tuxes. Looking around the floor I saw some of the women looking in their direction and thought 'oh boy, they are going to have a good night tonight'.

I was able to catch Bobby's eye before we sat down and smiled at him. He had a sad look in his eyes and I knew what part of it was about. I mouthed to him 'I love you' and 'it's okay' to him and the sparkle seemed to return some, he mouthed in return 'I love you too'. We still needed to talk, but I knew we would be okay. I smiled at him and nodded my head and turned back to Ranger who must have caught what Bobby said.

"You two going to be okay?" Ranger asked giving me a small hug and kissed the top of my head.

"Eventually. We need to talk, but I couldn't go into this night mad at him. Especially when I have a man on my arms that makes me feel completely safe and that I could trust with anything. Thank you for everything you've done." I reach up to his cheek and give him a kiss on the cheek then a small kiss to the lips as well.

"It's my pleasure Babe, but I should be thanking you. For taking a chance on me, trusting me enough to escort you here, it's an honor." Ranger replies.

"One heck of a first date wouldn't you say?" I laughed.

"Oh yeah. I guess I'll have to work hard on the second date to top this. I'll have to get really creative." He smiles.

We take our seats with me on the aisle since I would have to get up to present the award for Best Song in a Motion Picture. The show started on time and we were entertained by Nathan Lane throughout the evening with songs, dancing and jokes. Of course he decided to single a few of us out and remind everyone Worldwide of some of the more scandalous things that occurred over the year. Lucky me, he chose to remind everyone of the Golden Globes and Grandma showing her underwear.

Walking down off the stage Nathan stopped right next to me with the microphone. "So Stephanie, can I count on you to offer up some extra entertainment tonight? I'd feel left out if your grandma didn't help me too you know." He stated with a smile.

"Well, you'll have to ask grandma yourself about that one. I had nothing to do with it, but it certainly was memorable." I laughed. "She's right up there if you'd like to speak with her." Pointing to the balcony.

The crowd laughed as everyone heard grandma's response. "Oh yeah, I'm all for it. Come and get me Nathan, I'm all yours." I noticed that Nathan shivered a bit at her response and I laughed while patting him on the back.

"You're in for it now Nathan. I hope you can handle her." I said which created another rounds of laughs and applause. Nathan smiled and walked back to the stage already talking about the next highlight.

I looked over at Ranger and he was smiling right at me. He leaned over and whispered, "That was mean Babe. You just sicked your grandma on him."

"Hey, he brought it up. And this time I can't get blamed for it. Just sit back and enjoy, I bet she has him eating out of the palm of her hand in no time." I looked up to the balcony and noticed that grandma was already missing and the guys were all smiling at me. I winked at them all and went back to watching the stage.

The show progressed and I was not disappointed when grandma appeared on stage with Nathan dresses as a harem girl with her skin in the middle hanging loose. I had to hold in my laugh at the look on Nathan's face. They were introducing the next performance for the Best Song nomination and grandma was reading the card and doing her best to do a belly dance. Unfortunately gravity had not been kind to her and instead of it looking like a belly dance it was more of a loose skin shake. At least they had managed to pull up her saggy boobs somehow, but it appeared that by the end of the introduction that whatever they did was starting to fail and Nathan had to quickly pull her off stage once the intro was completed before something came loose. The crowd was a mixture of laughs and horror filled inhaled breaths.

The director of my film was sitting right behind me and leaned over to my ear saying, "You have one crazy grandma there Stephanie."

"You have no idea. Try living with her. It's never dull at my house." I smiled at him in return. He just shook his head with a small smile. "Maybe she can join us on the next film set. She would definitely liven things up for you."

A look of horror crossed his face, "No thank you. I get quite enough action as it is. Plus I don't want to be the one to record any of her antics; I'd have to see it multiple times in post production and once is more than enough thank you very much. Some of the things she's pulled are already etched in my mind, I don't need anymore." He says with a grimace. I just laughed.

We were coming up to the end of the show and I had already presented the award for Best Song a few minutes ago and I was starting to get really nervous. Ranger must have noticed because he squeezed my hand and when I turned to look at him he gave me a soft kiss on the lips. More relaxed, we both turned back to watch the show. Before we knew it, it was time to present Best Actress. The nominations were announced and the envelope was opened, there was a long pause as Jeff Bridges looked up from the envelope took a deep breath and announced "Stephanie Plum for **Hidden Truths**".

I was in shock at first as I turned to Ranger and he placed a wonderful kiss on my lips and said "Congratulations Babe. Proud of you." He helped me to stand up and I was kissed on the cheek by the director of the film and then Ranger led me up to the stairs, helping me up kissing my hand and then letting me walk over to the microphone. Jeffrey gave me a kiss on the cheek and handed me the statue and backed away so I could begin my speech. The applause was so loud at first I had to wait and take a deep breath before I began.

"Wow, what an honor, thank you so much. To say that this film is close to my heart would be an under statement. I would like to thank the Academy, everyone who had a hand in this film, as well as in my career. You have all brought me to this point and I don't know where I would be without you. For fear of leaving someone out I won't name names, but you know who you are and I thank you from the bottom of my heart." Taking a deep breath I continue, "From the moment this script landed in my lap I knew that I would do it. As many of you know there is a strong military presence in my family, as well as many friends that are currently serving this country or have previously served. Reading through the script and seeing how closely this film could relate to my own life I never had a doubt in my mind that I could do it. Through life experiences I already had the knowledge of what it was like to deal with the death of a loved one due to service for our country three years prior to this, and then again just two weeks before we started filming a horrible accident that claimed the life of one family member and almost the life of another just by driving in a car, so inspiration was never lacking with sorrow and anger."

" I would like to dedicate this award to the hard working and dedicated men and women in the military that are currently or have previously served our country to protect our freedom with their own lives both at home and abroad, your service and sacrifice will never go unnoticed as long as I have breath in me. To the families of those in the military, your sacrifice will never be forgotten and always honored, without you I don't know if any of us would be here today to celebrate. I know what it's like to send off your loved ones and not know if or when you will see them again, so to all of you out there, know that you will forever have my support and gratitude. To my Father, Grandma, and Uncle Mike, you have been there to support me no matter what my entire life, without you I would probably have become something that would never have made me happy. You encouraged me to fly and for that I will be forever grateful. To Emma and Bobby, my best friends, no matter what the future holds, we will ALWAYS have each other. To my friends new and old," looking at the guys in the balcony and then down to Ranger on the floor, "thank you for accepting me as I am and being just what I need. Ranger, thank you for offering your unconditional support, it means the world to me." With tears in my eyes I was able to step back from the microphone as the crowd stood on their feet. Jeffrey came forward to offer his arm and led me off the stage whispering to me his congratulations.

As we made our way off stage Nathan gave me a hug and quick kiss before he took the stage to keep the show moving. Now it was time to face the press in back and answer even more questions. I was still shaking as Jeffrey walked me to the press room.

Before he let me go Jeffrey paused in front of the door and looked at me, "You have a heart of gold Stephanie. I wish there were more people out there like you. Your family must be very proud of you." And with that he placed a kiss to my forehead and then pushed the door open and I walked through with a smile on my face, on to the inquisition.

**I hope I did her justice with her speech. I was having a hard time with it. Not sure if I am 100% happy with it, but if I keep going over it I'll hate it completely. Next up the press and then the after parties. Go Grandma.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

**A special Thanks to Dherea ShyGirl36 for your ideas that molded this addition. I hope you enjoy them.**

_Previously…_

_As we made our way off stage Nathan gave me a hug and quick kiss before he took the stage to keep the show moving. Now it was time to face the press in back and answer even more questions. I was still shaking as Jeffrey walked me to the press room. _

_ Before he let me go Jeffrey paused in front of the door and looked at me, "You have a heart of gold Stephanie. I wish there were more people out there like you. Your family must be very proud of you." And with that he placed a kiss to my forehead and then pushed the door open and I walked through with a smile on my face, on to the inquisition. _

XXXXXX

As I walked up to the microphone for the interviews the flashbulbs and clicks of cameras were going off like crazy. I shook my head internally at the all the reporters yelling my name trying to get my attention. I only had the intention of answering a few questions so I could get back to my date; this was always the part I hated about award shows. The press was like a pack of rabid dogs that would ask anything and everything.

"Stephanie, what are your plans now?" I heard someone ask.

"Well tonight I plan to enjoy myself with my family and friends, as for the near future I'm pretty busy. I have a benefit concert for the John Mitchell Foundation and USO in Trenton the first week of June, then I will be on Broadway mid summer for 'Chicago', and then I have a mini tour scheduled on the East Coast. Currently I don't have any movies in the works." I replied.

"Did you mean to leave your mother out of your speech?" someone asked.

"Yes. I thanked those that were supportive and have been there for me in my life. She is not one of those people." I replied.

"Wasn't she scheduled to be here this evening?" someone else asked.

"Originally yes, as a favor to my father, never at my request. To my knowledge she was to return to Trenton earlier this week." I replied.

"Then you didn't know that she showed up and was turned away by security? Apparently she made quiet a scene." asked someone.

"No, I didn't, but thank you for letting me know, I'll have to find those security persons who turned her away and thank them." I said with a smile. Which caused them to laugh.

"You went with such a nontraditional speech, why?" asked someone.

"Well, first off I'm not your typical actress, and second, the time is given to you to thank those who have helped you, and I chose to do that. I have had the opportunity to thank those that have had a very close impact on my career at other times, this time I choose to thank those that have helped in other ways. Those that serve in the military deserved to be recognized, but not just them their families as well. They all make sacrifices for the good of our country and are very rarely thanked." I replied.

"Who is the man that is with you this evening?" someone asked.

"His name is Ricardo Manoso. Yes, we are seeing each other and no I will not explain how we met or for how long we've been seeing each other." I replied. "Thank you everyone. I really need to get back now. Have a great evening."

The noise in the room increased with more questions that they wanted to ask, but I turned to the door and walked out with the escort provided to make my way back to my date.

XXXXXX

My Dad and Uncle Mike decided to call it a night and they took Val home so she could make sure the kids were all okay. The guys, grandma, Emma and I all headed for the Vogue after party. This was one of my favorite parties every year. I had already been passed around for the congratulations with everyone and now we were getting ready to party.

As we arrived once again the cameras went crazy. I just had to laugh at the guys, they seemed surprised at the number of press and even fans waiting to get a glimpse of whoever would be here, all except for Ranger that is, he had already been subjected to it.

I was hoping to just get into the party and avoid more questions, but I guess that was too good to be true. We all walked in a large group me leading the pack with Ranger, stopping to take pictures, when all of a sudden I heard the unmistakable voice of my mother over all the other noise. I noticed a few of the photographers turn their heads in her direction with wide eyes. A few glanced back at me with questioning gazes, at least these were the photographers I was friendly with, and I gave them a slight nod giving them permission to take the pictures. If anything happened having photographic proof would be a good thing.

Security was trying to catch her, but somehow she was just out of their reach. Ranger and the guys tried to move me quickly into the party, but we were stopped by her voice, "So your thugs are taking care of you Stephanie? You don't even have the decency to deal with your mother? You ungrateful whore." She called.

At that comment I told Ranger to let me go. Looking in my eyes he saw that I was pissed and released me. Grandma was at my side instantly to stand in front of my mother. "What is you think your going to accomplish by being here? I know you tried to get into the Awards and were turned away, but you couldn't take that gracefully could you?" I said.

"How dare you keep me away. I'm your mother; you owe me respect and will show it to me. You have been nothing but a pain since you were born." She began in her reply. "You've ruined my life. You father is going to divorce me because of you, you heartless child."

"Well, if I'm not mistaken I can't make anyone do anything. I certainly didn't make you hate me. I chose to leave, but you never stopped. I thought that putting a whole country between us would be enough, but obviously I was wrong. You think I was the one that dragged you out here tonight to humiliate yourself? Look at you, you were denied entry to the awards that you were told you were not welcome at. You show up here and offer nothing but harsh words that couldn't be further from the truth. The men that are with me are all my friends, ex-military and honorable men. They have fought for your freedom and what have you done? Called them thugs. You have done nothing in your life besides make other people miserable. Those men standing over there mean more to me than you ever have. I hope you enjoy what you've done, because you just embarrassed yourself on National TV and I'm sure it will be in the paper tomorrow as well. How will your precious 'Burg' react to that?" I said in a calm tone. There was no point in yelling at her she would never agree with a thing that I said.

Before I knew it she was screeching and brought her hand up to slap me across the face. Only to her surprise my reaction was quicker than hers. I was able to catch her wrist and spin her around so she was facing the crowd of reports and photographers with her arm pinned behind her.

"I hope you enjoy your new found fame Helen, because you are now going to have an arrest to deal with that will be in the very 'public eye'. You just tried to assault me and are trespassing on a private party." She stiffens in my grasp and I look up at the police officers that were standing off to the side. "Officers I would like to press charges against this woman for assault. You and everyone else here witnessed what happened here." They nodded their heads in acceptance, handcuffed my mother and read her her rights, she was screaming the whole time. I turned to the nearest film crew and said, "I would like to have a copy of that tape this evening before you leave if it's not too much trouble, completely unedited for my lawyer. I will gladly offer a short interview right now, but won't be answering any questions about this incident tonight." They were more than happy to comply.

XXXXXX

Sometime later after things had calmed down outside we were able to get inside and enjoy the party. The music was pumping loudly, the alcohol was flowing and the rich and famous were out to party. Ranger and I made our rounds speaking to many at the event, but I couldn't wait any longer to get him out on the dance floor. Excusing us from our current conversation when a nice slow song came on I led us to the dance floor. Once we made it there Ranger quickly spun me in around a turn and then plastered our bodies together.

We moved together effortlessly and it was as if there was no one else on the floor. Looking into his dark chocolate colored eyes I was in heaven. The sway of our hips and the beating of our hearts seemed to move as one. With one hand around my waist holding me tightly to him and the other holding my right hand he lead me through a very romantic waltz to the beat of the music. No words needed to be spoken between the two of us; it was like we knew exactly what the other was thinking at the moment. I leaned up to kiss his lips and he returned the kiss with gentleness. The beat of the music changed to something a bit more upbeat and we adjusted as needed, without space between us. I was amazed at how well he moved across the floor. Our steps mimicked each others as he spun us around, gyrated our hips and dipped me.

After a few dances we were breathing harder, but not just from dancing, my hormones seemed to be taking over some. We made it over to a corner of the room where we figured we could be alone for a bit, but were surprised to find my grandmother making out in the corner with Jack Nicholson. So much for my hormones taking control, we couldn't get away from that corner fast enough. So instead we headed to the bar to try to drink that image from our brains.

"How does your grandma do it?" Ranger asked shaking his head. "For as crazy as she acted she's able to land one of the most famous actors of all time."

"It won't go any further than that corner probably. For some reason he seems to have a thing for grandma. That's not the first time I've seen them together, but that is the first time with his tongue down her throat." I did a full body shiver. "I don't think I will ever get that image out of my mind now." I replied. I noticed they were already coming out of the corner and grandma bumped into Lester as they moved through the room. Seeing her whisper something to Jack and then she dragged Lester on to the dance floor. Poor Lester was forced to leave the model he was dancing with in the dust. I tapped Ranger and pointed in their direction. "See, now she's dancing with Lester. I feel sorry for him though, she's going to grope him the whole time. This is one of her favorite songs."

As 'Good Girls Go Bad' by Cobra Starship was playing I watched grandma grind on Lester and even though he had a look of horror on his face he seemed to be playing along. Ranger was leaning up against the bar with his arm around my shoulder as we were taking in the scene. Grandma running her hands up and down Lester's hips and thighs, eventually she made it to get her hands on his butt. Lester's eyes widened at that and I saw his hands move around to move her hands back around to his chest. I saw him speak something to her and she just nodded her head.

I looked at Ranger and said, "Do you think that he knows he's going to get groped from the front now?" I said laughing.

"God I hope not, this is too funny to watch." He said laughing while pulling me into his arms, my back to his front.

"You love to torture him don't you?" I asked.

"He never passes up an opportunity to pull something on me, so I enjoy it when I can." He replies.

We continued to watch them, and all of a sudden I was watching grandma's hand travel south down his chest. Lester caught my eye with a smile I smiled back but quickly had to look away since I knew what was coming next and I didn't want him to see that I knew it. When I looked away I noticed Binkie and Vince standing at the edge of the dance floor holding up their phones to record the show that was grandma and Lester. Then looking to the other side I noticed Tank and Ram were doing the same but from a different angel. Emma and Bobby were off in their own little world dancing in a corner of the dance floor far away from the show everyone else was getting. Even some of the other couples on the dance floor were watching the spectacle that was grandma and Lester.

"Hey Ranger, your guys seem to be taking as much pleasure in this as you are. Four of them are recording it." I stated.

Without looking away he replied, "Who?" pulling out his phone.

"Ram, and Tank from the left, Vince and Binkie from the right." I replied.

I noticed he typed something into the phone then put it back in his pocket. I looked back over at the guys and saw all four of them nod.

"What did you just do?" I asked him.

"I told them to send me a copy to my inbox when it was over." He replied with a laugh.

"And what do you plan to do with it?" I asked laughing.

"Send it to his mother announcing he has a new girlfriend she needs to meet." He says with a smile.

"You're horrible. I want to be there to see the introduction." I laugh.

"Sure thing Babe. You can meet my family then." He replies with a kiss to my neck.

We watched as grandma finally got her hands on Lester's 'goods' and the surprised look on his face was priceless. He tried to jump back but, wasn't able to move. Apparently she must have had a good grip on him, he tried to remove her hands but to no avail. The longer it went on the whiter he got, which with his tan complexion had to be hard to do.

"I think we should rescue him. I think he's put up with enough for now." I said giggling to Ranger as I moved closer to the dance floor. Ranger was right behind me. I noticed that Jack wasn't too far behind either.

"Grandma, I think Lester has had enough, don't you?" I asked her. Lester looked down at me pleadingly.

"You gonna ruin my fun Steph?" She said with a frown.

"Edna, I'll take you for a spin before we go home, how's that?" Jack asks her.

"Alright, that sounds like fun." Grandma tried to step away from Lester, but found herself stuck. I looked and noticed that some of the beads on her dress were stuck to the buttons of Lester's tux. I bent over to unhook them and found Ranger decided to press himself into my back at the same time. Oh boy.

After successfully unhooking them Jack and grandma made their exit and Lester looked much calmer. Ranger and I walked Lester back over to the model that he was dancing with previously. I smiled at her and said, "Take good care of him, he deserves it after putting up with those antics."

She giggled at him and said, "He sure does, that was so sweet of you to do that. You made her so happy. Now let me return the favor." She whisked him off to the dance floor where they started doing a little dirty dancing of their own.

XXXXXX

A short time later Ranger and I decided we had had enough and were more than ready to head back home. It had been a long day and we were both exhausted, but once we climbed into the limo to head back all the hormones were back in action and I didn't think either of us would be getting much sleep tonight. Oh well, it would be damn worth it.

**Alright so here we stop for today. Coming up, we will be skipping ahead in time to Memorial Day and then the concert in Trenton. We will still be hearing about the discussion between Bobby/Emma as well as Bobby/Steph, but in flashbacks not as they happen. I hope you enjoyed this update. Let me know what you think. **

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and offered suggestions to the storyline. Your support has meant more than you know. This story has been a blast to write. **


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**!SMUT AHEAD!**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

**So here is my first attempt at smutty goodness. Please be gentle with me. The only reason I am posting this is because I had so many requests for it last night. It took some wine to actually loosen me up enough to actually comfortably write it for the first time. Hope you enjoy it. The rest of the chapter will come later today. If I didn't post this now I would lose my nerve. Hehe**

_Previously…_

_A short time later Ranger and I decided we had had enough and were more than ready to head back home. It had been a long day and we were both exhausted, but once we climbed into the limo to head back all the hormones were back in action and I didn't think either of us would be getting much sleep tonight. Oh well, it would be damn worth it._

XXXXXX

Walking back into the house we couldn't keep our hands to ourselves. It was amazing to think that we had the house all to ourselves, not even the house staff was around. Finally breaking the kiss that had started as soon as we exited the limo, and continued as we made our way through the front door, we broke apart and were both breathing hard. Leaning heavily on the closed front door we looked into each others eyes and words were no longer necessary. I grabbed his hand and led him upstairs to my bedroom. As soon as we were through the door it was slammed behind us and I found myself plastered to his body with one hand in my hair and the other around my waist, my hands automatically found their way up into his hair and gripping tightly. Slowly he released my head without breaking the kiss, and moved his hand down to the top of my dress and slowly pulls down the zipper. Once the zipper was all the way down he stepped back enough to allow the dress to fall to the floor. My hands moved from his hair to his jacket to quickly remove it and immediately remove his tie and start on the buttons of his shirt.

The need to breathe was the only thing that caused us to separate from the hottest kiss that I had ever had. Our eyes met and the desire for each other blazed in each others eyes. Slowly moving back towards the bed I continued to open the buttons on his shirt and pulled it free from his pant. With his chest bared to me I couldn't remove the shirt completely fast enough. I ran my hands up his chest, over his shoulder and down his arms reveling in the feel of his ribbon like skin under my fingers, the feeling sending a shiver of delight through me. I noticed his dark chocolate eyes darken to an almost obsidian as he took in my lingerie clad body. Once his shirt was removed and my hands made their way back to his wonderfully smooth chest, his hands found their way to explore the exposed skin and lace on my body. He mimicked the trail that I had travelled on his body on my own, running his strong hands over my chest, making sure to brush the black lace of the strapless bra covering my nipples causing them to harden, continuing up to my shoulders with a whisper soft touch, leaving goose bumps in their wake, trailing down my arms and then back up, only to continue down my back, only stopping once he was able to grab both of my bare ass cheeks with his hands and lift me from the floor and pulling me into his body, forcing me to wrap my legs around his waist as he moved us to the bed. He slowly turned us around so that he could sit on the bed and devoured my mouth and moved one hand back up to my hair.

As the kiss continued my hormones were growing hungry for a feast, while grinding my core on his obvious arousal, I took a hand and decided to tweak and twist one of his nipple between my fingers until it hardened from my attention. Hearing his grunt of pleasure I decided to give the other nipple the same treatment which elicited a moan from him. The next thing I knew I was flat on my back and Ranger was attacking my neck and my bra had mysteriously disappeared, leaving me in only my thing and heels. He was grinding his groin into me and had moved a hand to return the treatment I gave to his nipple on me, only once he was done with the first one with his hand he covered it with his mouth, which caused me to inhale deeply at the unexpected sensation and my hips to jump up. I quickly grabbed his head and drew him closer to me enjoying the explosion of pleasure he was giving me. One hand made its way down my stomach and teased at the edge of the thong that I was wearing, but once he realized just how wet I was for him he seemed to grow impatient and ripped the thong from my body which drew a cry of surprise from me. His hand returned to my hot center and he teased my clit with two fingers pinching then rubbing and then finally dipping two fingers into my center. His thumb then continued to assault my clit and he continued to work me up into a frenzy. With the introduction of a third finger my hips lifted off the bed and I flew over the edge screaming his name over and over again.

Allowing me to come down from my first orgasm, Ranger moved his body to lay next to me and licked his fingers clean. Looking into my eyes he said, "God I thought you were beautiful before, but you are even more beautiful when you come." He kissed me deeply and I moved my hands to the belt and button of his pants to get at what I longed to get my hands and other things on. He helped me to remove his pants by lifting up his hips so I could push his pant down to free him from his confines. Immediately taking him in my hands I pumped him, causing him to groan into my mouth with pure pleasure. I broke free from the kiss and moved down the bed to completely remove his pants, shoes and socks with one hand while continuing to pump his cock. Looking back up his body I saw his eyes watching every move that I made, I smiled at him and used my tongue to lick him from base to tip and heard a hiss come from him, while continuing to lick the drop of precum from his tip. At my first taste of him I couldn't hold back any longer and took as much of him in my mouth as possible, surrounding the rest of him with my hand. I swirled my tongue around him and then began to pump a few time then releasing him, and then repeating the process over and over again increasing the pressure each time, while sliding my free hand up the inside of his thigh to tease his sac with the brush of my finger before moving back down his thigh again. On my last pass I lightly grabbed his sac and rolled his balls in my hand, but was abruptly stopped by Ranger's hands pulling me up his body and flipping me onto my back. "If you don't stop that I won't last more than a few more minutes." Ranger growled.

Smiling at him I tease, "Well, we have all night and no time that we have to get up in the morning."

"Good because I have no intention of letting you out of here anytime soon." He replies. With that said he began kissing down my body and making his way to my core where he assaulted me with his mouth for what felt like hours, only this time he was in no hurry to let me finish, he would bring me to the brink and then ease back off. He would pump two fingers in while he swirled my clit with his tongue and as soon as I was close he would turn his head and kiss the inside of my thigh and remove his fingers. As soon as I came back from the edge he would drive his tongue inside me and finger my clit again.

Finally when I felt like I was going to go insane, I panted, "Ranger, I need you inside me NOW." At first he ignored me, I grabbed at his hair and attempted to squirm away from him, I was so desperate to have his sheathed inside me, but he made me beg him. "Ranger please, god, I need you inside me. I need you to fill me up. I need to feel you inside me NOW. PLEASE." In that instant he stopped his ministrations smiled up and me and stalked me like a cat, and placing himself at my entrance.

Looking into my eyes he replies, "With pleasure." and he entered me slowly, agonizingly slowly, allowing me to adjust to his size and he never lost eye contact with me. As soon as he was sheathed completely he paused, to regain control of his body and I reached up to grab his head and pull him down to me allowing some of his weight to rest on me, and fusing my lips to his. He began to move inside of me and our body found a rhythm that was slow and filled with passion. The emotions that seemed to pass between us were overwhelming, and soon we couldn't control our hunger for one another. We began to pound against one another, trying to touch as much skin as we could possibly touch. The pleasurable burn building in my belly was building so fast that I was afraid if I let go of him I would lose it. It was almost like holding on for dear life, and apparently he felt exactly the same. I reached down to grip his ass with one hand and his shoulder with the other and soon I was flying over the edge screaming his name. Some seconds later I was able to hear him roar my own name in release and continue to pump a few more times into me while my muscles milked every last drop from him. He finally collapsed on me from exhaustion and then rolled off to the side taking me with him. We cuddled together with my head tucked under his chin until our breathing came back to normal.

I kissed his chest with feather light kisses and lightly ran my fingers up and down his arm. Ranger's finger came up to my chin and tilted my head back. I was awarded with the most beautiful smile I had ever seen from him and received a kiss on the lips. "You are truly amazing you know. Don't let anyone ever tell you anything less, because if they don't know how wonderful you are then their not worth your time and energy." He stated before placing another kiss to my lips.

"Thank you for that and for everything that you did tonight. I couldn't have asked for a better escort or someone that wants to be here with me." I smiled at him.

"I do want to be here, and I have no intention of giving it up either." With that a whole new round of ecstasy began, and it certainly was not the last of the night.

**Okay so what do you think. Should I just stick with the regular story and no smut? More to come later today. **


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ I kissed his chest with feather light kisses and lightly ran my fingers up and down his arm. Ranger's finger came up to my chin and tilted my head back. I was awarded with the most beautiful smile I had ever seen from him and received a kiss on the lips. "You are truly amazing you know. Don't let anyone ever tell you anything less, because if they don't know how wonderful you are then their not worth your time and energy." He stated before placing another kiss to my lips. _

_ "Thank you for that and for everything that you did tonight. I couldn't have asked for a better escort or someone that wants to be here with me." I smiled at him. _

_ "I do want to be here, and I have no intention of giving it up either." With that a whole new round of ecstasy began, and it certainly was not the last of the night._

XXXXXX

Waking up in warm arms was a wonderful feeling, especially when you feel so protected in those arms and never want the feeling to go away. Rolling over to face my bedmate, I stretched as I went to get rid of some of the soreness of our previous night's activities, and when done I came face to face with the most gorgeous dark chocolate brown eyes I had ever seen. Without saying a word he gave me a deep passion filled kiss that curled my toes and caused me to moan in delight.

When we broke the kiss I rested my head on his chest and signed in comfort, "Good morning Babe." He said in a sleepy voice.

"Mmmmm, morning. But I wouldn't say that it's just good, I'd say wonderful." I replied sleepily.

"I definitely want a repeat of last night, but maybe next time we can leave out the awards show and just go out the two of us before we end up back here. Hopefully someplace a bit less public so we can talk, although if I had my choice I would have you naked as often as possible." He said with a smile and a dreamy look on his face.

I giggled at him, "Eventually we'll be able to do something like that, but it won't be today." I say sitting up straddling his hips leaning down to kiss him and grinding my hips into him eliciting a groan from him and his arms immediately go around me to pull me closer. The next thing I knew there was someone pounding at my door. No sooner had we pulled the covers up to hide what we were doing does the door fly open and crashes against the wall.

"What exactly is going on here?" screams Bobby as he stalks closer to the bed.

"Bobby, knock it off and get out of my bedroom." I say to him in an icy tone. Ranger just squeezes me tighter to him, a move that was not lost on Bobby.

"What do you think your doing Ranger? You knew how I felt about her. How could you do this to me?" Bobby screams at him.

Ranger stiffens underneath me, and all of a sudden we hear heavy footsteps come running up the stairs. Bobby was still moving slowly towards the bed we were laying in with the look of shear hatred on his face looking directly toward Ranger. Lester and Ram were the first ones through the open door taking in the scene.

"Lester, Ram please get Bobby out of here and take him down to the family room. I'll be down to talk to him a few minutes. I need to get cleaned up first." I asked.

"Sure thing Beautiful." Lester says, and Ram nods. Both trying to get Bobby under control, but he was fighting them. It took a few minutes for the guys to get to leave the room.

"I've never seen him like that before. Just what type of relationship do the two of you have? And I don't want you talking to him alone. He didn't look completely stable while he was standing there." Ranger comments.

Sighing deeply, "It's complicated, but we know that we aren't meant to be together forever if that's what you were asking. I love him, you obviously know that we've been together, but that hasn't happened in a long time, since it's been a while since we had seen each other. But it won't happen again, if I'm involved with you, or while he's involved with someone else. For so long he has been my protector and supporter, that I think this is more related to not being there for me last night, rather than him finding us in bed together. I've seen him like this before a few times I'll talk to him and things will be fine." I say as I begin to climb out of bed.

XXXXXX

A short while later Ranger and I made our way downstairs and into the family room. Bobby was looking out the window onto the back patio with his fists clenched tightly at his sides. I looked around the room and saw that Lester and Ram were both at opposite ends of the room, everyone else had cleared out.

"Hey guys, thanks for your help. Can you give Bobby and I some privacy?" I asked them.

"I don't think that's such a good idea Beautiful." Lester commented.

"I'll be fine. I know how to handle him, even when he's like this. No worries." I smile at him weakly.

"I don't know about this Babe." Ranger says looking directly into my eyes.

Touching my hand to his cheek I reply, "Trust me, Bobby and I will be just fine. Wait outside the door if you like, just give us a chance to talk. Alright?"

Hesitating a minute he nods and then kisses me on the forehead. "I'll be just outside."

The guys all walk out the room leaving Bobby and I alone. I hesitate a minute before I approach him. I noticed that Bobby hadn't moved since I walked in the room, so I walked over to him and put my arms around his waist from behind and just hugged him. It took a few minutes, but he started to relax and eventually placed his hands over mine. He began to take deeper breaths and I felt his muscles start to tremble. Releasing him I grabbed him hand and pulled him over to the couch and pulled him down next to me where I could snuggle into his side.

"I'm so sorry, Steph." He grabbed me and hugged me to him tightly.

"I know you are. But, I don't think that what you saw is the cause of the problem is it?" I asked him.

He shook his head, "Not all of it anyway." He took a deep breath before speaking again. "God Steph, I failed you. I never wanted to do that. I never wanted to be the one to cause you pain. I never wanted to be the one to look in your eyes and to know that the pain was there because of me."

"Bobby, I know you didn't do it on purpose." I tried to explain, but he interrupted me.

"But I still did it. That doesn't excuse what I knew I should have just done for you." Bobby tried to explain.

"Hey, look at me." I grabbed his face with both of my hands and made him look into my eyes. "I know that you didn't mean it. I know that you would do anything for me." He looks at me in the eye with pain filled eyes. "Alright, almost anything. I don't blame you for anything Bobby. You can't help how you feel, but you need to talk to me about it. You can't keep things bottled up Bobby, not only is it not healthy, but it will cause problems for our relationship. Bobby I love you, but I can't be the one to help you work through your internal struggles. I haven't been where you were. I only know that no matter what happens, no matter how mad we get at each other, that we will always be together Bobby. You never have to doubt that. I will always be here for you."

"How can you say that? How can we be when we hardly ever see each others? When we are on different sides of the country? I can't deal with this alone, and now that you seem to be getting closer to Ranger, you won't want to be around me." Bobby says.

"Hey, we've both had other relationships before and they have never come between us. You know that." I replied.

"But this feels different. The others have just been temporary. This doesn't feel temporary Steph. This feels like it will never be the same between us. I see the way he looks at you. It's the way," he hangs his head.

I cut him off. "The way I see you looking at Emma, Bobby. You used to look at me like that, but you don't any more. We both know we aren't right for each other in that forever sense."

"But you're the one that I've loved since the day I met you." Bobby states.

"Maybe, but you've loved Emma longer, and you know it." A light bulb finally went off in my head. "Is that part of the reason that you feel guilty Bobby? Because you loved Emma when she and John were together? Because you were the one that made it out alive and not him?"

Lifting his head, he looked at me with the most pain filled eyes I had ever seen. Tears finally spilling over from his beautiful eyes as he tried to control his breathing. "My god Bobby you had no control over that. You've been living with this for years and never said anything to me or anyone? Bobby you know that you can talk to me about anything, and I would never judge you. It doesn't make me feel used, if that's what you're thinking Bobby. I know you love me and have loved me for a long time. And you know that I would be more than happy to see you and Emma together. Seeing you this week with her, I can't remember a time you have both been more at ease with each other. You need to talk to her Bobby. I finally got to see the light back in her eyes this week that has been missing for so long."

He just looks at me. "You really want us to be together?" He asks me.

"It would make me almost as happy as it would make the two of you if you would get your heads out of your asses Bobby." I laughed at the surprised look on his face. "I've been telling you that I would be happy for you to find someone that you could spend the rest of your life with for a long time Bobby. The only thing that would change is the fact that we wouldn't sleep together any more. Don't get me wrong the sex is great Bobby, but I have a feeling it would be even better if it was with the person you were absolutely, head over heals in love with." That brought a laugh from him.

"I don't know. The sex has always been amazing with us Steph. I find it hard to believe that it could get any better. You're the only one that I've never talked about to the guys, and not because I didn't want them to know about you. It was too private to tell them about." He explained.

I placed a gentle kiss on his lips then. "Bobby, you were my first in a lot of ways. You were the first man outside of my father that accepted me for who I was. The first man that I fell in love with. The first man that I really made love to, not just had sex with. And up until a few days ago the first man I would go to if I needed someone to escort me to some kind of function that I really needed someone that I could trust." At that comment he flinches. "I know that you wanted to be there for me, but weren't able to. That's okay. Honestly, I think everything has turned out for the best don't you? I know I've only known Ranger for a short time, but it feels like there is something that's there, and I want to see where it goes. He says he wants to be there for me, and I feel comfortable enough that I can truly be myself around him. Bobby the only other person that has made me feel that comfortable is you."

"Steph, Ranger has had a thing for you for a long time. I knew it; I just didn't think he would be the one for you. I don't know if that's because I didn't want to let you go, or whether his reputation with women got in the way. I wanted to protect you, even though I know you can be a man eater in your own right." He laughs at that comment.

"Hey, I take offense to that mister. I've probably slept with less people than you have." I retort.

"Yes, but you have to contend with the public eye, so it probably slowed you down. I don't have that problem." He laughs.

"Are you calling me a slut?" I ask him indignantly.

"No, just that you get your release just like the rest of us. You just have to be more careful than the rest of us." He replies with a laugh.

"Ass." I say with a glare at him. "Having a relationship with someone that wants you for your popularity or money is not what I wanted, and I made it quite clear what was going on. The only one that didn't seem to understand that didn't fair very well."

"Yeah, I remember." He says in a flat tone.

"Anyway, back to the topic at hand, nothing is going to change between us other than we aren't going to sleep together anymore Bobby. You need to talk to Emma, and let her know how you feel, and all of it. Not just what you want her to hear, but ALL of it. You may be surprised at what she has to say." He nods his head. "And next time you want to talk to me you might not want to barge into my bedroom like you did earlier. I had a different kind of wake up planed and you ruined it." At that comment he blushed.

I laughed at him then. "Come on, let's get something to eat. I haven't eaten since last night and I'm starving." I stood up and offer my hand to help him up.

He takes my offered hand and instead of walking with me he throws me over his shoulder and heads quickly for the kitchen. I was pounding on his back yelling at him to let me down. I looked up to see Lester, Ranger and Ram following closely behind. We made it into the kitchen but he didn't stop there. He kept going.

"Bobby put me down, don't you dare do what I think you're going to do." I yelled at him.

"And what would that be Steph?" He says laughing as he speeds up to head out the back of the house to the pool deck.

"Damn it, I'm hungry. I want to eat not go for a," I was cut off by the water that enveloped me from being thrown in the deep end of the pool. I came up sputtering and glared at the man laughing on the deck from where he had tossed me. I saw Ranger come up quietly behind him. "Bobby you are so going to pay for that." The next thing I knew Ranger had pushed Bobby into the water and he was surfacing next to me sputtering and he had a stunned look on his face.

I swam over to the side of the pool and Ranger offered me his hand and pulled me up out of the pool. Once I was out I wrapped my soaking wet self around Ranger and layed a deep kiss on his lips. Releasing him I said, "Thanks for the help. Now let's get something to eat." Grabbing his hand I pulled him into the kitchen after stripping myself of the wet clothes I was wearing. He offered me his t-shirt off his body so that I wasn't standing there in my bra and panties.

XXXXXX

The rest of the time the guys were with us in LA we tried to keep a low profile. The paparazzi were standing outside my gate night and day, so it made it very difficult to go anywhere without an entourage. Before we knew it though our time came to an end and the guys had to head back to New Jersey. I decided to go with the boys to say good bye at the airport and could have a few extra minutes with Ranger.

"I really wish I didn't have to leave Babe." Ranger says taking me in his arms.

"I know, but we'll see each other soon. The time will go by quickly. And don't forget I'll be in Trenton for the concert at the beginning of June, and then for six weeks during the summer I'll be in New York. It's my turn to head out your way, so how about you let me know what your schedule looks like in about two or three weeks and we can work something out." I replied.

"I have a surprise for you, but I need to iron out some details first. I'll give you a call when we get in tonight. If I can't hold you, I at least want to hear your voice every night." With that he gave me a deep kiss that curled my toes.

"I swear if there weren't other people around I would take you right here mister. You fry my brains when you kiss me like that." I informed him.

Chuckling he replies, "Good to know Babe, because I feel exactly the same way." And he kisses me again just as deeply.

Saying goodbye to all of the guys was very hard. In the course of two weeks they

had all become my family and they would never be let go. I gave each man a hug and a kiss on the cheek telling them I would see them soon and not to get into too much trouble, to which they returned the sentiment.

As I finished up saying goodbye to everyone I returned to Ranger and then turned to look at Bobby who was in a passionate lip lock with Emma. It seemed that they had finally gotten their heads out of their asses.

Turning back to Ranger I asked, "Will you look out for him for me? I don't think Emma could take it if something happened to him. And he may need someone to talk to."

"Anything for you Babe." He kissed me one final time and then boarded their plane.

Bobby came over to me and gave me a huge hug saying, "Thanks, you have no idea what this meant to me."

Before he released me I replied, "I think I do."

**Sorry for the delay getting this one out. My husband and son came back from 5****th**** grade Science camp and I have been hearing about it since Friday night. The story will be jumping into the future to Memorial Day in the next chapter. Then will progress at a normal pace for a while. Hope everyone is having a great Memorial Day Weekend. **


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_Turning back to Ranger I asked, "Will you look out for him for me? I don't think Emma could take it if something happened to him. And he may need someone to talk to." _

_"Anything for you Babe." He kissed me one final time and then boarded their plane. _

_Bobby came over to me and gave me a huge hug saying, "Thanks, you have no idea what this meant to me."_

_Before he released me I replied, "I think I do."_

XXXXXX

The ride in the limo was a somber time. Looking out the windows as the trees pass by during the short ride from the hotel to the cemetery there was not a sound in the car. Each of us lost in our own thoughts of what this day meant, and who we were going to be here to mourn. I had been here numerous times in the past to mourn the loss of fallen soldiers that I knew, or just to represent the Foundation. It never got easier to be here, but somehow I felt it was necessary to pay remembrance to those that were taken from us in the name of our freedom and safety. Today would be a day to remember for me, and to remain in the shadows.

As I turn to my father I see the far away look in his eyes, and I reach out to grab his hand to give him a squeeze. He turns his head to me and gives me a weak smile and a light squeeze back, but not releasing my hand. Pulling in to the cemetery his grip tightened a bit and some of the unshed tears were allowed to spill, but were quickly brushed away. I looked at the men around me and noticed that they all were having similar reactions to our arrival. Having Rangers hand in my other I quickly raised it to my lips to offer my silent support of this man I had come to love in the last few months. He looked at me with a small smile and squeezed my hand and turned back to look at the window.

As the limo stopped, all breathing seemed to stop until the door was opened for us to exit. One by one we filed out of the limo and waited for our group to all arrive. We had made arrangements for as many of the Rangemen who wanted to attend today's services to be able to sit together. All in all we were a group of over fifty, with only one woman, me. Over the past few months I had been introduced to many more of Ranger's men in both Boston and Miami, some of which I had known previously, and others that were brand new to me. All of the men in our presence today had served in one form or another for their country, be it Marines, Army, Navy, Air Force, or Coast Guard.

Making our way to the Memorial Amphitheatre the crowds seemed to melt away and allow us through without a word. We must have made quite a spectacle, as most people began to stare at us and take pictures. My father and Uncle Mike were leading the group to our section with Ranger and myself following closely behind them. Finding our seats I noticed Uncle Mike up speaking with a few other Generals that he knew, that I had met once or twice. There was a piece of paper that was given to Uncle Mike from each one of the Generals and I wondered what that was about. He turned to look at me and I noticed that the other Generals nodded in my direction, to which I returned.

A short while later before the service began Uncle Mike returned to his seat and patted my hand saying, "I have something for you that we will need to discuss after this is done." My only response was to nod in agreement, whatever it was I knew it was important. As the ceremony was about ready to start the crowd became eerily quiet. Flags flew all around us, and men and women in uniform surrounded the amphitheatre. All stood at parade rest, and all very aware of their surroundings.

The band began to play and not a single person made a noise. We watched as the Core branches of the military marched in and the head speakers for the ceremony took their seats. We listened to speeches from those in the service, the President of the United States, as well as those from the Joint Chiefs of Staff speak of how we were honoring those fallen soldiers. We witnessed the placing of the wreath in front of the Tomb of the Unknowns, and honored those fallen with a moment of silence.

At the conclusion of the ceremony we all remained where we were until the crowd had thinned out. We had planned on visiting some of our fallen friends and family that were buried here at Arlington before we left. Before we had a chance to exit the Amphitheatre we were approached by some of the Joint Chiefs and their guards. First they greeted Uncle Mike and then my father. To say that I was surprised that my father knew some of these men was an understatement.

Uncle Mike turned his attention to me and introduced us all. Uncle Mike began to explain what this was about, "Steph, the papers that I was given before the service began were requests of those high up in the government for families of fallen soldiers. Some of them are very recent, and have been made by family friends or other officers that survived the tour but lost their friends, some are for families that are having a difficult time, but have lost their loved ones more than five years ago. The government has been unable to meet these requests at this time, but they didn't want them to go unnoticed. These gentlemen and the President as well, know of your Foundation and were wondering if you might be able to help them. As they have been explained to me some are very simple, while others may be a bit more complicated, but all are local to this area."

"Ms Plum, we know your dedication to our soldiers and their families and we were hoping that you would be willing to assist them. Your status as a public figure can actually do more good for these families and the soldiers than any words that our government can give them. The American people are more than willing to help on the holidays, but it is our goal that our soldiers have support year round and we are hoping that your foundation would assist us in that way." stated Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

"Mr. Secretary, I would be more than honored to assist with these requests. Anything like this my foundation will more than happily assist with, that was the purpose of its creation. Any further requests that you receive feel free to send them threw Uncle Mike and we will make sure they are taken care of as soon as possible. The only thing I want to make sure of is that these families are not bombarded with press in their time of grieving. We are there to support them, not use them for publicity." I replied.

"Absolutely, but would you be willing to do maybe some public service announcements throughout the year and maybe increase your announcements during interviews and concerts?" He asked.

"That I can definitely do." I replied. After a few more minutes of discussion we said our goodbyes and made our way thru the cemetery.

Our first stop was my grandfather's grave. I remembered as a little girl he was a very quiet man, and seemed tormented by what he had lived through with his time in the Army. "I remember him before he left for his deployment in WWII. He was a very outgoing individual, always able to make us laugh and had a twinkle in his eye, much like you Steph. However once he returned from his tour he was never the same. The spark was gone; he hardly ever talked, and almost always had this haunted look to his face. The only time we noticed any type of spark reappear in his face was when you were born Pumpkin. He saw something in you and knew you were special. I remember one conversation with him very clearly. He told me that you would be the one to make a difference for people like us. That you would be the light that allowed us all to come out of the darkness and horrors that we had all seen in the world. He had told me later in his days of the things he witnessed when they came upon some of the concentration camps and what he knew some of those people had gone through. He said that they often haunted his nightmares, but when you were close by him the nightmares went away. He made me promise to support you no matter what you decided to do. The day before he passed away was the day that you jumped off the roof of the garage and broke your leg. I don't think I ever remember him being so serious and then laugh so hard in my life. He only said, 'she's something special'." Looking at my father I noticed tears streaking down his face.

We moved throughout the cemetery and each of the guys offered us a small speech about the person we were stopping to honor, while others said nothing because they were too emotional. We were there to offer our silent support for them. We slowly moved throughout the grounds trying not to encroach on others that were there to pay their respects. The last marker that we stopped at made my heart stop.

**Diego Manuel Manoso **

"My younger brother was following in my footsteps. He told my family that he wanted to be just like me, and that he was enlisting in the Army. They fought him every step of the way. I was so proud of him that he stood up to our family, something that he had never done before. He worked his way up in the ranks and was quite a good soldier in his own right. I had heard through others that had worked with him that he was one of the best they had worked with. He fought for this country with honor and proved to our family that he was meant to protect those that couldn't protect themselves. Our family never did completely understand the need to serve our country, but when he showed them the medals that he had earned in his service they were proud of him. The last time I saw him was right before he left for his second tour in the Middle East. He was to lead his troops in securing a few of the small towns in Iraq that were still being held by the insurgents. He was ready for his role and was proud to be able to lead them. A month later I received a call from his commander informing me that he had been killed in the line of service, by protecting his troops. He gave his own life to save those of his group, allowing them to escape. In the end they were able to take control of the town where he was killed, but he lost his life in the process. I had never been more proud of him, but at the same time saddened that he was gone. Our family blamed me for his death, which I expected, but what I didn't expect was for them to refuse to honor his service. He had signed over control of his remains to me in his paperwork and I knew what he wanted, to be buried in a military cemetery, so that's what I did. I know our parents don't come here to visit him, but I make a point to come every few months. He was more than a son and a brother, he was a hero and I refuse to allow anyone to forget that." Ranger explained.

XXXXXX

I have never been more moved than I had been today. Each and every one of these men had lost a friend or loved one in the line of duty. I wanted them to know that no one was forgotten. I had requested that each of them join us in the small ballroom of the hotel we were staying at. Once we arrived at the hotel we all made our way to the ballroom and everyone took their seats for a catered lunch. When everyone finished I let them all know what I had in mind.

"So I have a feeling your wondering why I asked you here, besides having lunch. Well, the Foundation every year sends a care package to all families that we assist as a thank you for their sacrifice on Memorial Day. The number keeps getting larger every year, and though it saddens me for their loss it also makes me unbelievably happy to know that I can honor them. What I would like you all to do is open the envelopes that were placed in front of you." Each man reached forward and opened their envelope. I heard large gasps and saw looks of surprise on their faces. "The money that is in your envelope is for you to honor either a fallen or injured soldier or their family that you know. It could be the soldier that you honored today at the cemetery, or someone else. It's really up to you. These soldiers can be from any time of service, so you are not limited in who you assist. The foundation has not been around long enough to know just exactly who needs our services. We try to get the word out there, but there are some that are to proud to make use of our services. If you know of someone that is in desperate need, or have more than one person that you feel should receive assistance please let me know. Sometimes the family members are more willing to receive something from a fellow soldier, than an organization like this. It feels less like a hand out. The one thing that I want to make you aware of though is do not pressure them to take the gift. If it is truly something that they are uncomfortable with, we can see if there is something else we can do for them. There is more than just financial help that we can assist them with."

I looked around the room to see each man with tears in his eyes. "For those that choose to help an injured soldier please let them know that there are services we can offer for training if they so need and want to rejoin the work force. We also offer counseling to those that need it and their families as well. I know that you all will make good use of the funds you have been given." I finish.

At the completion of the lunch each man gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek saying 'thank you', but honestly I didn't think that I could ever say 'thank you' enough for everything that they have gone through for our country. Many of these men were feared in public by the average citizen, but I knew that each and everyone of them would give their lives in defense of their country, as much as those that we visited today at Arlington National Cemetery. This day would be one of the days to remain in my heart for all times.

**I hope you liked this entry. More to come soon. Happy Memorial Day everyone.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_At the completion of the lunch each man gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek saying 'thank you', but honestly I didn't think that I could ever say 'thank you' enough for everything that they have gone through for our country. Many of these men were feared in public by the average citizen, but I knew that each and everyone of them would give their lives in defense of their country, as much as those that we visited today at Arlington National Cemetery. This day would be one of the days to remain in my heart for all times. _

XXXXXX

Returning to Trenton, NJ was not something I did very often, and when I did do it, it wasn't with confidence that everything would go smoothly. No it was more like 'what is going to go wrong this time?'. Growing up in Trenton, I knew a lot of people here; I had a lot of friends from high school that were on the Police force and a good knowledge of who the public figures were in the neighborhood. As a high school class we were all pretty tight with each other, but of course ten years can definitely put some strain on relationships, not to mention that I was in the public eye constantly and there were virtually no secrets. Throughout my career I had gotten numerous calls requesting things from people that I knew from high school, tickets, connections, you name it some people were just not shy about requesting things. Don't get me wrong I never really minded when it came to school fundraisers, or other community program auctions. If it had anything to do with the Police Department or children I had no hesitation with donating pretty much anything.

However this visit seemed different for some reason. I had this very strange feeling that something was going to go so very wrong, and I wanted to just head out of town as quickly as possible. Unfortunately that wasn't an option for me. I had too many commitments in town for that to even be considered. Ranger had convinced me to stay at his apartment in his office building instead of at a hotel, claiming it would not only be more secure, but Ella could cook us anything we wanted and we could spend more time just the two of us. I wanted to laugh at his alone time comment, anytime I had spent at any of his offices over the past two months there were at least three other men around us at all times. No one seemed to fear their boss when they had the opportunity to be close and talk to me. I did enjoy it, but I really wanted to be alone with Ranger.

The rest of the week was scheduled for a media blitz for this weekends coming concert and the Foundation. Pretty much the each day would be visiting different TV stations, but I also wanted to visit the local VA hospitals. I tried to do that in every city I visited if there was one. I've met a lot of friends that way and it helps to get the Foundations information out there. Today I was going to visit the local ABC affiliate WTRN in the morning and then I would be going to a local cable channel in the afternoon. Ranger had insisted on attending the interviews with me and contingent of his guys to make sure things went smoothly. After previous visits to Trenton and the crazies that seem to be born and bred here I contracted Rangeman to be my security for around town and at the concert. I'm tired of crazies getting into my dressing and hotel rooms, hence one of the reasons I agreed to stay with Ranger in his apartment, but not the most important.

Leaving Rangeman we had three vehicles total, which I thought was a bit much, but whatever, if it made Ranger happy that was fine, I'd just make sure that I paid for everyone's services. Pulling up to the station I was starting to get a bad feeling, which apparently Ranger noticed something was off with me.

Looking at me with his raised eyebrow he asked, "What's up? You seem tense all of a sudden."

"Something feels off, but I don't know what. Let's get this done and get out of here. I'm starting to remember some of reasons I left Trenton to begin with." I replied.

He nodded and we walked into the studio and were walked to the green room. I was introduced to the host of the morning show Tanya Wright and the producer Orvil Harding and both seemed to be overly happy that I was there. One thing I hated was how fake some people could be, and these two were right there up there with some of the biggest kiss asses that I had encountered in my career. As they left the room I looked over at Ranger and sighed.

Coming over to give me a kiss and a supportive hug he said, "Do people normally seem to grovel at your feet? That honestly had to be to biggest display of brown nosing I have ever seen." He laughs.

"Yeah, that was pretty bad, definitely not the worst but surely right up there." I laughed.

The show started on time and the audience seemed to be chomping at the bit to get to what they really came for. About thirty minutes into the show I was introduced and welcomed on stage and the interview began.

"Welcome to the WTRN Morning Show Stephanie, we can't thank you enough for visiting us today. I understand that you are in Trenton for a benefit concert for the John Mitchell Foundation. Can you tell us a little about the Foundation?" Asked Tanya.

"Thank you for having me Tanya. Yes the concert is being held this Saturday and the proceeds of the concert are going to be split between the John Mitchell Foundation and the USO. I created the Foundation about four or five years ago when one of my best friends lost her husband in combat. We found that the benefits the government offered the families of those that lost their lives in the service of their country was not nearly enough to support them, nor were they offered any training of childcare assistance to get training. Also there was very limited counseling available to those that were in need of it. The foundation also assists those soldiers that have been injured in the line of duty, with counseling, retraining and other assistance as needed. Since there is a very strong presence of the military in my family, anyone that serves in the military is very near and dear to my heart." I explain.

"Did I hear that you also have a new CD that is being released for a fundraiser as well?" Asked Tanya.

"Yes, there is a CD that will be released soon with all different artists, each of whom has chosen two or three songs that mean something to them with regards to the troops. Again the funds will be split between the John Mitchell Foundation and the USO." I replied.

"Why have you chosen to split the funds between the two organizations?" Tanya asked. "Since you are doing the work wouldn't it be best if all the money went to your organization?"

That question surprised me honestly. "That's not how I work Tanya. The Foundation helps those injured or the families of fallen soldiers. The USO is an organization that assists those that are alive and entertains those troops that are currently serving. All manners of soldiers need to be honored and that is what these two organizations do. I have travelled with the USO many times, some at their request, and other times I have organized the trip. I like to make sure that the money is spread around, and no one organization benefits from my works. There are many other organizations that I donate to and do work for as well, but these two are the main ones."

"So, after being in this industry almost ten years, do you think you'll be ending your career anytime soon? Looking to start a family? You have been seen around the last few months with the CEO of an East Coast Security company. Any wedding plans?" Tanya asked.

Alright now I was getting irritated. "Currently I don't have any plans to start a family and as far as wedding plans, that would be between Carlos and myself. If there were any and we wanted to tell the world we would. As far as my career, I don't plan on ending it anytime soon if ever. I enjoy what I do, and have no intention of changing for anyone." I replied.

The next thing I knew there was a voice coming from behind me that I was not expecting. "Of course you wouldn't change for anyone. Why would a selfish person like you be willing to change anything for anyone else? That's just another disappointment I have to deal with from my self centered daughter." My mother announced.

I turn to face her with a blank stare on my face. "Well folk look who's joined us, Helen Plum, the mother of Stephanie Plum, Welcome Helen; it's nice to see you again." Tanya says.

I turn back to Tanya and look at her; she had the biggest smile plastered on her face. I look over at Ranger and give him a nod and see him pick up his cell phone and make a call.

"Well thank you Tanya, it's nice to see you again as well. You've treated me better than my ungrateful daughter here has ever treated me." replies my mother.

"Helen, please have a seat." I was wondering why there was an extra seat next to me. I watch as my mother takes her seat next to me, knowing good and well that the restraining order requires her to stay more than 500 feet away from me. "Will you be attending the concert this weekend Helen?"

"No actually I was not offered a ticket to the event by this ungrateful daughter sitting next to me. She even had the gall to not allow me to attend the Academy Awards a few months back. She chose to attend the awards show with a group of thugs and murderers rather than have her own mother there." My temper was starting to boil more with every word that she said. "Now she is seen all over the country with men that have taken more lives with their bare hands than we have flowers in our gardens Tanya. What kind of presence is that to be in? She chose to go with a murderer instead of a nice actor that is fitting of her place in society, but no she chose to do what she wanted and disgraced our family." My mother replied. I just let her dig herself a deeper hole to fall into.

"Those men she chooses to hang around with are nothing but scum." I looked up at Ranger and saw how angry he was. I shook my head at him once and winked at him to let him know that I wasn't going to just let this go. "She is even responsible for my failed marriage. She encouraged her father to divorce me and now he's living out there with her in CA where we can't work on our marriage together like every other married couple would do. She has been nothing but a mistake all her life. She has ruined my life and ruins everything that she touches." She tried to continue but I cut her off.

"Really well then I would like to know how the three Academy Awards I was awarded and the multiple Grammies I have won came from. Do they belong to someone else? Because they have my name on them. As for your marriage you have done nothing but make my father miserable for as long I have known you. You have never wanted to take responsibility for any of your actions, and continued to blame me for anything that he ever gone wrong, whether I was here in Trenton where you were or not. I've been gone for ten years and I still get calls blaming me for everything that goes wrong in your life when I'm all the way on the other side of the country. You've never supported me in anything I've done, so why would I want you there on a night where I needed support?"

"I'm your mother. I should have been there." She replied.

"Why so you could get your moment in the spot light? So you could make a scene like you did on the red carpet of the Vogue after party? You do realize that there is still a restraining order where you are supposed to stay away from me right? 500 feet away from me!" I reminded her.

"No court would ever tell me to stay away from my own daughter here in New Jersey." She waves it off. I let her own stupidity go; she knew very well that the restraining order was specific to New Jersey and California.

"As for the men that I have been in the company of the last few months, you know nothing of them, so calling them thugs and murders, yet you know nothing of them. Have you ever met any of them besides Bobby? Do you have any proof of what you say they have done? If you do then you must have one of the highest levels of national security that I have ever heard of for a civilian." I look at her directly with cold eyes. She had no response to that.

"Of course you don't have proof. All of those men are ex-soldiers, every one of them receive an honorable discharge from the military. All of them have risked their lives for the safety of average people just like you and Tanya here by serving our country. What have you done Helen?" The use of her name from my mouth caused her to gasp. I turned to Tanya, "What have you done Tanya to serve your country, because you can't claim that this television program is any kind of service with what you have pulled here today." She just gawked at me in response. Turning back to my mother, catching a glimpse of the police waiting in the wings, out of the corner of my eye I continue, "If anyone should be embarrassed by anyone's behavior it's me of yours. You chose to air your dirty laundry on TV for everyone to see. And you know what they see Helen? They see a miserable woman that has no respect not only for her daughter, but the military and herself. I hope you enjoy your embarrassment, because you're the one that caused it, well you and Tanya here."

"You ungrateful whore!" My mother screamed. "You whore yourself to all of those men and you think your better than me? You think they are going to give you what you want? You think that by spreading your legs that they will be there for you? They will drop you like yesterdays trash as soon as they get what they want from you."

Standing up I cut her off, "And you think that you know what I want? I've got news for you Helen, you have no idea what I want, but I will tell you one thing that I want, and that's to be nothing like you. But I've already accomplished that. I care about others. I don't put myself before everyone else, and if I ever choose to have children you have supplied the perfect example of what not to do. That honestly is the only thing that I can and ever will thank you for."

Anger flashed in her eyes and her face contorted in a nasty scowl. She reached back to strike out at me, and once she was ready let her arm fly. Unfortunately for her she fights like a girl and doesn't have much strength behind her, I was able to sweep her leg out and she went down hard on the stage since I made no attempt to soften the blow. The police advanced quickly and restrained and removed her before things could escalate any further.

**So Let me know what you think? This was a fun one, but certainly more fun to come tomorrow!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ Anger flashed in her eyes and her face contorted in a nasty scowl. She reached back to strike out at me, and once she was ready let her arm fly. Unfortunately for her she fights like a girl and doesn't have much strength behind her, I was able to sweep her leg out and she went down hard on the stage since I made no attempt to soften the blow. The police advanced quickly and restrained and removed her before things could escalate any further. _

XXXXXX

The entire episode had been recorded and aired while it took place, which I was more than aware of. The show continued as if nothing happened with the rest of their guests, but I was more than fuming. Before anyone from the show could approach me Ranger was at my side and then the police started to approach.

"Are you okay Babe? She really went after you up there." Ranger asked.

"Nothing I haven't heard before about me, but she went too far with her comments about you and the guys. I won't let her get away with it Ranger." I replied.

"We've heard it before Babe, it was nothing we haven't heard before, but it was the first time on television that I have seen it happen." Ranger replied with some anger in his voice.

"Exactly, and it stops now." I replied.

The police, I recognized a few of them from our neighborhood growing up and others that I had been very good friends with growing up.

"Steph are you okay?" Asked Eddie Garrazza. "Sorry it was under these circumstances that I see you for the first time this visit."

"No problem Eddie," I said offering him a hug. "I'll be fine."

"Stephanie, it's been a while. Outside of this, how have you been?" Joe Morelli asked.

"Good Joe. Other than this episode things have been really good for quite some time." I smiled at him. "Joe, Eddie this is Carlos Manoso, CEO of Rangeman. Although I'm sure you already know him."

"We do, how are you Ranger?" Joe asked offering a hand.

"Well thanks. What is it that you'll need from us? I'm sure that you're aware of the restraining order that was enacted in California but was also extended to New Jersey because of previous events from the after party in California." Ranger stated.

"Yes, we've been aware of that since it was ordered, but we'll still need you to come down to the station to give an official statement." Eddie confirmed.

"That's fine, but there are at least two other people that should be getting arrested as well for allowing this to take place and actually encouraging it, Tanya Wright and Orvil Harding. They both knew this was going to take place. Everyone is aware of the restraining order in the press and all were warned against something like this." I offered.

"I don't know how well we'll be able to substantiate that Steph. Unless we can find some evidence of an interaction between them before the show we'll only be going by your say so." Joe replies.

"I can fix that right now. Excuse me for one second." I pull out my phone and dial the one man that can take care of everything right now. "Harry, its Stephanie Plum. I'll be better once a certain situation is taken care of." I listen to his response and see three men staring at me with questioning gazes. I smile at them before speaking again. "Well I was at your affiliate station here in Trenton, KTRN, and was just ambushed by your morning show host and her producer with my mother showing up and causing a scene on TV live. (pause) Yes, Tanya Wright and Orvil Harding. (pause) Yes, I need to have the security footage turned over to the Trenton Police Department so they can look for evidence that they were holding my mother in another room before the show took place. Due to the restraining order my mother shouldn't have been any closer than 500 feet from me." I paused to listen and saw the eyes of the three men in front of me widen at the conversation. "Harry, I thought this had been dealt with before, everyone was made aware that this topic was off limits and the fact that the law is involved should have deterred them even more, I am seriously considering not giving any interviews to any program ABC has because of this event. A morning show is not the paparazzi Harry, they're supposed to be a respectable news source and this interview was to support two non-profit organizations. I can take scandals and accusations from the media as good as the next guy but this was by far the most hurtful and spiteful production that I have been involved in quiet some time."

I listened intently to what he was saying. He assured me that it would be taken care of right away. "Yes I can hold for a minute." He placed me on hold and the guys were still staring at me. "What? You said you would need evidence right? I'm, getting it for you."

"Yeah, but we can't use evidence that was coerced from someone." Joe stated.

"You think calling the CEO of ABC and requesting the tape after explaining what took place and requesting surveillance tapes if they have any is coercion? I happen to know the man and he told me nothing like this would happen and look what happened. If they aren't brought up on chargers their careers are over in this industry anyway, unless you want to see them on some low level cable channel that is run out of someone's basement. I just want them to suffer the consequences of their actions." I explained.

Harry came back on the line about ten minutes later and informed me that security would be bringing the tapes to use, one copy for the police and one for my records as well. I noticed a security guard walking our way as he was speaking. He also informed me that both Tanya and Orvil would be removed from the building as soon as I was done speaking with them if they weren't removed by the police. "Thank you Harry. I really appreciate this." I watched as the security guard handed Joe a copy of the tapes and waited for me to finish my conversation. "Sure, would you like to come here or would it be easier for me to come there? Actually it would be two of us if you don't mind. Okay, well, how about Thursday night then? Sure thing Harry, we'll see you then. Thanks again." I closed my phone.

"Ms Plum, I received a call asking me to make you a copy of the surveillance videos for you as well. Is there anything else that I can get you?" offered the security guard. I noticed that his name was James.

"Thank you for your help James I really appreciate it. Will you be hanging around until I speak with Tanya and Orvil?" I asked him.

"Yes ma'am. I will be." He replied.

"Call me Steph, ma'am is way too formal. It'll only take me another minute." I smiled at him. Turning back to Joe, Eddie and Ranger, "I have to take care of something before we can leave. Do you guys want to stick around or do you want to meet down at the station?" I asked.

"I think we'll stick around in case you need back up," Eddie offered and paused, "or witnesses." We all laughed at that.

"You think I'll lose my cool Eddie?" I asked him with a laugh. "Well, I'll use you as witnesses, but I won't stoop to their level. No, I have something much better planned Eddie." I smile at him.

"James, would you mind taking us to find Tanya and Orvil please?" I asked him. He nodded and the four of us followed him and walked out of the studio and headed toward the dressing room. As we moved down the hallway my anger was building in me. Ranger grabbed my hand and pulled me to him and slung his arm around my shoulder.

"Babe, calm down. You can handle this, just like everything else you've done. That interview was brilliant by the way. You kept in control and you kept to the facts. You can do it again." Ranger encouraged.

I kissed his lips as we walked and said, "Thank you. This won't take very long. Sorry that you have to deal with this."

"Hey, I'm here to support you. I'm just glad that I insisted on coming today. I know that Lester or Ram would have supported you but, I'm glad I can be here." He nuzzled my hair.

We arrived at what looked like an office and noticed that both Tanya and Orvil were inside, but there were two security guards standing a few feet on either side of the door. Walking in Tanya and Orvil both look at me in shock.

"What, you thought I would leave without speaking with you first?" I asked them.

It took a minute before Orvil spoke, "Well, we thought the police would need you right away and I had planned on calling you later today to make sure that you were okay, but I can see that by your presence you seem to have recovered from that episode."

"Well, so glad that you were so concerned to stick around and make sure I was okay." I said flatly. "I want to know if this was planned. Did you set this up so you could spike your ratings?" I asked.

"Well, Stephanie," Tanya started.

I cut her off, "You will call me Ms Plum. My friends call me Stephanie, and I can assure you that you are no friend. I will never do another interview for either of you, nor will anyone else that I know. Now did you set this up?" I asked angrily.

"If you're going to be that way about it, why wouldn't we? Why would we let the chance to increase our name and our viewership? You're known as the Hollywood Sweetheart, but there's more to the story than what the public sees." Tanya remarks.

"Do you like your job Tanya?" I asked her.

"Well it's a stepping stone for now, but after this episode of my show I'm sure that I'll be getting calls from other networks and shows outside of Trenton." She explains.

I smiled at her. "You really don't know this business do you? Do you really think that someone that set me up for a scandal would be able to get away with it? Did you really think that I would roll over, lick my wounds and wait for it all to pass?" I looked at both of them before continuing. "Orvil, you knew this was going to happen and knew that the media was to stay away from the topic of my mother. Not only that but you knew about the fact that there was a restraining order and forced her to sit next to me. Why would you think that I would be okay with this?"

He looked at me, "Come on, she's your mother. You can't tell me that you've cut her out completely."

"Have you seen any pictures of us together? Have you heard me talk about her on my own? Have you heard of her attending anything that I participate in?" I asked him.

"No." he comments.

"Exactly right." I turn to Joe and Eddie, "Did you hear enough to arrest them?"

"Yep." Eddie responds. Tanya and Orvil just gape at us then. Eddie and Joe step forward and read them both their rights.

Once they were done placing handcuffs on the duo I informed them, "By the way, Harry told me that your things would be packed and left in the lobby for you when you were released from police custody if you were arrested. In your items you will find a letter of termination." They both looked at me stunned like they didn't know who I was talking about. "Harry Althouse, the CEO of ABC, you do know who that is right?" At that both of their jaws drop to the floor. "I thought so. You might want to keep in mind who you try to pull one over on the next time, but I can guarantee it won't be in this industry." With that Joe and Eddie walk the duo out of the office.

**So what do you think? More to come this weekend. Since this is the last week of school we have a graduation ceremony on Thursday and my daughter has a kindergarten performance on Friday. Coming up more drama and then lots of fun. **


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ Once they were done placing handcuffs on the duo I informed them, "By the way, Harry told me that your things would be packed and left in the lobby for you when you were released from police custody if you were arrested. In your items you will find a letter of termination." They both looked at me stunned like they didn't know who I was talking about. "Harry Althouse, the CEO of ABC, you do know who that is right?" At that both of their jaws drop to the floor. "I thought so. You might want to keep in mind who you try to pull one over on the next time, but I can guarantee it won't be in this industry." With that Joe and Eddie walk the duo out of the office._

XXXXXX

Arriving at the TPD Ranger walked me in with our contingent of guys to keep the busybodies and press away from me. We were immediately walked into a conference room so that I could give my statement. Ranger and I were separated shortly after arriving so we could give accurate accounts of the events without influencing each other. That was fine by me; I just wanted to make sure that everyone involved would be paying for their part in this fiasco.

Joe took my statement, and when we were finished he thanked me for coming in and assured me that everything would be taken care of as quickly and quietly as possible.

I could only smile and laugh, "Joe have you not seen how my life goes? There is no such thing as quiet honestly. I'll just be happy when this is all resolved. I've gotten used to the publicity, whether it's good or bad."

"I really don't know how you do it Steph. I hate dealing with the press." He says shaking his head.

"Well they have their moments, but for the most part it works out in my favor. Plus I get to help others with what I do, so I'm happy, although a vacation without the paparazzi would be a nice treat." I replied.

"I bet, those pictures of you and Ranger in Costa Rica were certainly something. I guess that beach wasn't as private as you though it was supposed to be. Those pictures were hot, but I can't say that I would be happy about others seeing me in action on the beach like that." He shook his head at that thought.

"Yeah, well not only that, but I got sand in places I certainly didn't need sand. That probably won't be repeated anytime real soon." I grimace at the uncomfortable memory of sand in cracks and crevices that were sensitive for quite some time after the clean up.

Joe couldn't hold in his laugh at my comment. "God Steph, it sure has been boring around here without you and your grandma. Well with the exception of your mother's occasional outburst about you, we get bored real easily."

Opening the door and walking through with Joe on my heels I comment, "I aim to please. Though I can say when I'm between jobs I try to keep a fairly low profile. Grandma seems to get her picture in the paper more than I do at times. The big scandals are saved for when I work." I laughed. "I don't want to keep the Police to terribly busy. You know I was actually accused of faking these things that happen and they said I was using them as a publicity stunt? The way things happen around me I don't need to insight anything, they just happen whether I want them to or not."

"Then I guess your just a shit magnet there Steph. I think you inherited that from your grandma." Joe comments. "I'll let you know if we need anything further and when the date is set for their trials. Depending on the judge he may be willing to adjust his schedule to work this in while you're in town so you can be present without further travel. I'll let you know. Should we contact you through Rangeman?" he asked.

"That's perfect. Thanks Joe." We took a few more minutes to catch me up on his family and what he had been up to the last few years and then Ranger, the guys and I were on our way to the next interview.

Getting into the SUV and settling into the bench seat cuddled up next to Ranger my mind started to wander to that trip to Costa Rica Ranger had surprised me with. Our second date had been something that Ranger had put a lot of effort in to. He had told me that he wanted to do something special and that it was going to take some thought to top our first date. I had to admit, the first date was hard to outshine, but he had done a damn good job of it by surprising me with a trip two weeks after he left to return to Trenton. He had booked us into the Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica Peninsula Papagayo. We had a private villa that he had stocked with food and linens so no cleaning staff would be necessary for the first few days. It also came with a private beach outside our room as well as a pool. The Resort was one of the most luxurious I had ever been to, and it was also one of the most private locations we could have dreamed of.

_ With two champagne glasses and bottle of champagne in one hand and a blanket in the other Ranger led me out onto our private beach just outside our door. In the heat and humidity of Costa Rica we only needed to wear out swimsuits. We had been mostly in our swimwear or nothing so far on this trip. Laying the blanket out on the sand Ranger helped me to sit down and then slipped in behind me so his legs were on the outside of mine and his free hand around my waist after handing me a full glass of champagne. We sat in silence watching the setting sun in the distance taking in all of the reds, pinks, oranges and purples in the sky just holding onto one another. Finishing my glass as the sky finally turned to black; I silently laid it down on the blanket and turned to sit on my knees between his legs to cup his face with both my hands. I lowered my lips to his gently letting him feel all the love that could be expressed just through that kiss. He opened his mouth to me without taking control and slowly slid his hands up my back to hold my shoulders from behind. The kiss gradually became more passionate as my hands moved from his face to his hair and pulling him tighter to me. _

_ I moved one hand lowering it slowly to run down his neck, then my palm caressed his chest, tracing his pecs with a whisper soft touch before taking his nipple between my fingers and rolling it back and forth gently. This elicited a groan from him that I swallowed with my mouth. His hands moved down my back ever so slowly and made their way into my boy short and pushing them down my thighs as far as they would go and then massaging my thighs on their return path._

_ The kiss continued with only a separation allowing for each of us to take a deep breath in order for us to continue. The passion was building, but was never hurried. The hand I had been using to manipulate his nipple started to descend down his torso and tracing every indentation of his incredible abs, my other hand made it way from his hair down to join the first hand, but not before stopping to tease his other nipple. One of his hands had made it way up the inside of my thigh was teasing my clit and then would slide back and forth in the wetness he found between my thighs. I moaned as the sensation was starting to cause the fluttering in my stomach to build. My hands then made their way to his swim trunk and pushed at the waistband. His only response was to lift his hips up putting his weight on his hand that was not currently driving me wild with need, so that I could remove his trunks from their current location, which as I saw it was impeding my progress to where I wanted to be. I was also able to free one of my legs from my boy shorts so I could move freely. His hand that was manipulate my clit moved so that he could thrust two fingers inside me swiftly, pumping in and out while his thumb continued to assault my clit. With his other hand he quickly remove my swim top, all without ever ending the longest, sweetest and most passionate kiss I had ever given or received. _

_ Once my top was gone I moved so that I could press as much of my bare skin against him as possible. I just couldn't seem to get close enough to him. I was getting so close to going over the edge and as soon as Ranger noticed he backed off, but never completely stopped, which caused me to groan in disappointment of not being able to climax. As soon as I had calmed down enough he thrust a third finger in me, pumping in and out slowly, but curling his fingers to touch my g-spot with every upward motion. I was so close when he once again stopped the movement of his hand, and then removed it completely. With no clothing in the way he easily lifted me by grabbing my ass with both hands and lowering me directly onto his ready and waiting shaft and I wrapped my legs around him completely. Sliding down on his steel like shaft felt like coming home and our kiss paused for the first time since it began so that we could both enjoy and adjust to the ecstasy that was flowing through us. All motion stilled once I was completely surrounding him so that we could both regain some semblance of control. Moments later I moved my hands caressing his chest and then around to his back to hug him by grabbing his shoulders from behind. He mirrored my hold with his own arms and we began to rock slowly back and forth, keep the rhythm slow and steady. Neither one of us was willing to rush, we just enjoyed every second of being so connected. It felt like hours later when we both came together swallowing each others moans and cries of pleasure. No words were necessary to express how we felt for each other; the love was all there in each others eyes and the lack of desire to move from that position. After several minutes of looking into each others eyes, another round started with Ranger still deeply buried inside of me, only this time it was not quite so gentle. _

"Babe," I was nudged out of my memory by Ranger and opened my eyes to see a set of obsidian colored eyes looking at me before he moved to place his lips near my ear and whispering, "I don't know what you were daydreaming about, but the moans that you were making have me thinking I need to find us a private room in the next studio before you do this interview. What were you thinking about Babe?" He asked me.

"Hmmmmm, Costa Rica, our private beach and the night with champagne." I replied which caused him to groan in response. "I want a repeat tonight, but without the sand." I said, but a bit too loudly.

"Beautiful, I'll be happy to join you to make any fantasy you have come true. Just let me know when and where." Lester offered laughing at the look on Ranger's face.

"Santos." Ranger growled.

"Sorry Lester, but I have all the help that I need right here next to me, but if he ever comes up short I'll let you know." I giggled. "If you're that bad off right now I'd be happy to tell grandma about it and I'm sure she could assist you with any fantasies you have." Lester groaned at my words.

Ranger pinched my nipple teasingly, "Babe, never gonna happen. My appetite for you will never be satisfied. Besides there are still a lot more fantasies that I have, and what I want to do to you may take quite some time to get to them all." I groaned in response.

"Hey you two, quit it back there. We're pulling into the next studio right now, and I prefer to walk in there without a major hard on obvious to the world." Lester stated.

Coming to a stop at the studio doors I replied, "Aw, poor Lester, I guess I shouldn't tell you that the image of you sporting a massive hard on turns me on to no end then huh?" I laughed at his groan and turned to smile at Ranger. His eyes were dark as coal and I knew we may be in the need for a little privacy ASAP.

"Babe," Stepping out of the car he pulls my back to his front and pulls me into him to show me just how turned on he is, "you really are an evil woman." He growls in my ear.

"Well, I try, but I didn't want you to be the only one sporting something that big. The two of you should attract some attention of your own in here, maybe they'll leave me alone for a few minutes." I teased. I turned around to see Ram grimace as he got out of the SUV, "Well I guess that would be the three of you." I laughed then turned in the direction of the doors to go inside and the three men followed along walking a bit funny for all the world to see their little problem, but then again none of them seem to be little.

XXXXXX

The last interview of the day went without a problem. No questions were asked that were uncomfortable and they graciously glazed over the events of the mornings activities in deference to staying on topic and talking up the benefit, the Foundation and the USO. We spent about an hour and a half at the cable station and I made sure to speak personally to the head of the network that was onsite to praise my interviewer, now that was someone who I would be more than willing to speak with again. Everyone seemed overjoyed with what had taken place and we quickly made our way to the SUV and headed back to Ranger's building so we could have dinner.

Stepping outside Ranger spoke in my ear, "Get ready to pay for your little stunt earlier. I'll have you begging me for release so fast you'll think twice about teasing me."

"Promises, promises." I replied with a humorous tone as I climbed in the SUV and wiggled my butt at him. "You better be willing to follow through there Mr."

**Alright, coming up a conversation with Frank and Grandma, then the benefit concert. Let me know what you thought of this update. Thanks for reading along. I hope you enjoyed it. **


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. **

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ The last interview of the day went without a problem. No questions were asked that were uncomfortable and they graciously glazed over the events of the mornings activities in deference to staying on topic and talking up the benefit, the Foundation and the USO. We spent about an hour and a half at the cable station and I made sure to speak personally to the head of the network that was onsite to praise my interviewer, now that was someone who I would be more than willing to speak with again. Everyone seemed overjoyed with what had taken place and we quickly made our way to the SUV and headed back to Ranger's building so we could have dinner. _

_ Stepping outside Ranger spoke in my ear, "Get ready to pay for your little stunt earlier. I'll have you begging me for release so fast you'll think twice about teasing me."_

_ "Promises, promises." I replied with a humorous tone as I climbed in the SUV and wiggled my butt at him. "You better be willing to follow through there Mr." _

XXXXXX

Arriving back at Haywood we were met by Daddy and Grandma, both wore looks of exhaustion and sadness. At that moment the only thing I could think to do was hug them tight and whisper 'it'll be alright, she needs to get help'. Daddy only nodded his head in agreement, but leave it to grandma to speak her mind.

"That daughter of mine doesn't know her head from her ass. She'll need to have her head surgically removed from her ass before they can do anything to help her mentally." She said with a shake of her head.

I couldn't help but giggle at her comment, and just like that everyone laughed as well. Leave it to grandma to come up with someway to release the tension. Although I'm sure she would have preferred another method, but by how far Lester was staying away from her right this moment I didn't think he was willing to help be of any assistance to her.

We walked to the elevator and made our way up to Rangers penthouse so we could all talk about the days events. Ranger called down to have dinner brought up for the six of us. Even though Lester and Ram offered to let us talk we insisted they stay as well.

"This may be my mother guys, but you're my family too. What she says and does will affect you as well, you know. Besides I have a surprise for you two and I'll need a few others up here after dinner if they're available." I said with a smile. They just nodded in response.

Daddy started the conversation, "Your mother's bail hearing was done this afternoon. There was no bail set for her. They're holding her since they feel that she will ignore the restraining order again while you're in town. So to prevent any further problems she's being moved to the county jail to await trial. I also found out that the final divorce papers were delivered just before we arrived for Memorial Day. So that may have helped cause the problems today."

"Daddy, no matter when those papers were delivered it shouldn't have caused her to do anything. She knew it was coming. She probably just used it as an excuse to fly off the handle. I spoke with my lawyer earlier and he's going to see what he can do to get her a psych-evaluation. This is something that has only gotten worse over the years. He has all the evidence of events from the past to help with this." I replied.

"Helen needs to get some help, I don't think that there is anyway around it. She just seems to get worse as the years go by. This is the first time she's tried to do it on live tv in a studio, but definitely not the first time she's done it in front of a camera." Grandma comments.

"That's why I have so much evidence to prove she's unstable. For someone who cares about what others think, she sure doesn't seem to care where she is when she says the things that she does." I said to grandma.

"So you have more than just today and the red carpet after parties?" asked Ranger.

I hung my head in defeat, "A lot more. This has been going on for years Ranger. The woman has never accepted me from the time I flew off the garage roof when I was little. In her eyes I've always been a disappointment to her no matter what I've done." I reply.

"I don't get it. Your successful, rich, everyone loves you, and your one of the most generous people I've ever met. How can she be disappointed in that?" asked Ram.

"I'm not married and popping out kids. I'm not the 'burg', which she seems to frame her life around. Now that she's divorced, which goes against 'burg' ways, she seems to think that because I'm different that everything is my fault. That's how it's been forever." I answered.

"But it shouldn't have been that way. You did everything that any parent could have asked Pumpkin. You went above and beyond what everyone else did, both in and out of school. Yes you were different and got into some trouble, but nothing more than any normal child every did. I should have been there to protect you from your mother more." Daddy said sadly.

"Look, I'm fine. I seem to have grown up to be pretty healthy, both physically and mentally, and I'm a success in my career of choice, despite her. You were there for me when I needed you, you couldn't be there all the time. Let's not dwell on the past, there's nothing we can do about it now, let's just move forward." I said to him holding his hand.

At that moment dinner arrived and we all sat down to eat in silence. I was more than ready for a topic change and after dinner I had my surprise to tell some of the guys about.

Lester and Ram were looking at me expectantly while we all made our way over to the couch. I looked over at Daddy and he was just smiling brightly.

"Lester can you call Binkie and see if he can come up for a minute? Ram can you call Vince and see if he's available as well?" They both nod with questioning looks on their faces. The calls only took a few minutes and before we knew it Vince and Binkie were at the door being let in by Ranger.

"What's up? Everything okay?" asked Vince.

"Everything is fine. Have a seat." I replied. They both sat down and looked around at the group waiting for whatever was to come. I smiled at them, "Okay, well for the concert you know that the funds are being split between the Foundation and the USO." I received four nods of their heads. "Well, to help push the sales of the CD's that are coming out in the next week or so I wanted to play the songs that were recorded, and I would like to have you play them at the concert with me." I waited to see their reactions.

It took a few minutes, but they finally started coming out of their stupor, "You mean you want us to play live with you? Are you sure about that?" asked Lester. I nodded in response.

"But we're not professionals. The recording studio was one thing, but this, wow, this could go all sorts of bad." Binkie said wide eyed.

"Hot damn, I've always wanted to do it, but I don't want to ruin the sounds that you make." Ram responded.

Vince just stared at me. "Guys, I wouldn't ask if I didn't want you there. If it makes you feel more comfortable, I'll have my band stand as back up on the songs. But you were the ones on the CD and I want everyone to see you play in person. I know you can do it. You guys more than earned it when we recorded it. Plus it'll be a lot of fun. I can't wait to get you up on stage." I stated.

"I don't know about this." Vince finally responded. "We haven't practiced."

"You four have the next few days off to get in some practice, if you accept." Ranger commented.

Four sets of eyes stared at Ranger first, then turned to me and all yelled at the same time, "Hell Yeah."

"Alright then, I'll have my band drop off any equipment you need to practice here. Ranger cleared a conference room for the four of you. Everything will be here tomorrow. Thanks guys. I'm really glad you decided to do this." I said.

"No we should be thanking you Beautiful. This is awesome. I can't believe we get to do this." He got up off the couch and swung me around in circles. When he set me down I was picked up and thanked by all of the other guys as well.

Once we were all tired everyone decided to call it a day and get some sleep. The next few days were going to be very busy, and I couldn't wait for my next surprise to be announced.

XXXXXX

The last few days had passed by quickly and without word as to what was going on with my mother, which had me both nervous and thankful. Rehearsal for the concert had gone well earlier today and Ranger and I were back at the penthouse relaxing for a bit before heading back to the concert arena.

"Are you ready for tonight?" he asked pulling me in closer to his chest.

"Yep, how about you? Your not going to be short staffed tonight are you? With the four guys off so they can play with me on stage, do you have enough for your normal business, besides being my detail for back stage?" I asked.

"I brought in some of the Boston guys. They flew in earlier today. They all wanted to come, but they had to do a lottery to see who would be here. Everyone wanted to see you." He replied.

I giggled, "Well I'll just have to make it up to the ones that didn't get to come today then. We should probably get back to the arena. My crew is setting up a few more surprises for everyone."

That got me a raised eyebrow, which caused me to laugh even harder. "Hey you can't know everything Mr." I said slipping out of bed.

"I need to know everything when it comes to your security." He replies.

"These surprises have nothing to do with my security I promise. This person is a very good friend of mine and was very excited to be able to participate in this. The guys and the crowd will be very happy when they see who it is. Trust me." I said as I walked into the bathroom.

A short while later we were heading back to the arena for me to get ready when my phone rang, "Hello."

"Hey Steph, I'm here where are you?" a voice asked.

"About two minutes out. Go ahead and start getting ready. Have Dominic show you where to go. You know what, hang on I'll have him come get you. They should be done setting up by now. I'll see you in a few minutes."

"Sure thing honey, I'm really excited about this. It's been a long time since I've sung the songs we chose." The voice replied.

"The others didn't have a problem with it did they?" I asked.

"Not in the least. They even offered to let us record it if we wanted." The voice replied.

"That could be fun. Let's see how it goes tonight." I said excitedly. "Let me call Dominic and he'll be there in a second."

"Okay." And we hung up.

I picked up my phone and called Dominic, "Hey there, the surprise has arrived. Can you retrieve it from the back door and take it to my dressing room to get ready?" I asked him.

"On my way Steph, I'll see you in a few." He responded.

"Thanks." And we ended the call. I turned to Ranger smiling to see he was looking at me with narrowed eyes. I gave him a quick kiss on the lips and turned back to the front. I could still feel his eyes on me.

Arriving at the arena we quickly moved into the corridor and headed straight for my dressing room. My crew of body guards was right on my heels. When we arrived at the door Dominic was just coming out with a smile on his face and he quickly nodded in my direction and then off he went.

Ranger tried to stop me from entering the room and I waived him off. "This is not going to harm anyone trust me." I step up to the door and knock on it before entering. As I walk in I greet my guest, "Hey there, I have some people I want you to meet." I say with a smile on my face, allowing the guys to enter the room. As I turn around after closing the door behind me and look at the shocked looks on the guys faces I couldn't help but giggle.

"Ranger, Lester, Ram, Vince, Binkie, Tank and Bobby" I pointed to each one of them as I said their names, "This," waiving my hand at the other person standing in my dressing room, "is".

**Haha, yes you have to wait until the next update to find out who is there. Evil? Just a bit. Now let me know what songs you would like to have included in the concert. I hope you enjoyed this update. Let me know what you think. More to come soon. **


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ Ranger tried to stop me from entering the room and I waived him off. "This is not going to harm anyone trust me." I step up to the door and knock on it before entering. As I walk in I greet my guest, "Hey there, I have some people I want you to meet." I say with a smile on my face, allowing the guys to enter the room. As I turn around after closing the door behind me and look at the shocked looks on the guys faces I couldn't help but giggle._

_ "Ranger, Lester, Ram, Vince, Binkie, Tank and Bobby" I pointed to each one of them as I said their names, "This," waiving my hand at the other person standing in my dressing room, "is"._

XXXXXX

Before I could finish my introduction I heard, "Holy Shit! I'm seeing things right?" Lester asked. "There's no way what I'm seeing is for real."

"Hell yeah." cheered Ram. I had to laugh at that one.

I noticed a slight smile on Bobby and Ranger's faces, and I also noticed that Vince, Binkie and Tank all wore looks of pure shock. I couldn't hold in the giggle.

"Are they always like this?" asked our guest with a laugh.

"Pretty much. Although I guess they are adjusting more, you got some speech. When they first met me they all stared at me with open mouths. Even Ranger here, and I don't think I've seen him look like that since." We laughed. Ranger glared at me. "What? It's true."

"Well, anyway, as I started to introduce you before Lester so rudely interrupted." I said laughing at the look on his face. "Boys this is Beyonce as you can see. She's offered to do a few songs with me tonight." They all seemed to be coming back around to their normal selves now.

"Wow, it's an honor to meet you." said Lester.

"I've always wanted to see you in concert." said Ram.

Binkie and Vince both blushed and said 'Hi'.

At that moment Emma walked in the room, "Hey Steph, hi Beyonce. You guys need to start getting ready. We start in about forty five minutes. Boys you need to go get dressed as well and then I can show you where you'll wait before you go on." Emma informed them. She kissed Bobby on the lips before leaving the room to continue on about her work.

Beyonce looked at me and smiled, "You were right they do look good together." She commented.

"Just call me little Miss Matchmaker." We both laughed. "Alright boys you know where your dressing rooms are, go get ready with the outfits I have in there for you. I'll see you up on stage in a bit." They said their goodbyes and headed out, leaving Bobby, Tank, Ranger, myself and Beyonce.

"Hey thanks for doing this. I can't wait till we get to sing together, it's been a long time." I said.

"Yeah it has. I'm looking forward to it as well." She paused then looked at me. "So this is the guy huh?" she asked.

"Yeah." I kissed Ranger on the lips. "He's taken to the publicity rather well honestly. Although I think he has put the fear of god in a few of the paparazzi back home, it's great." I say with a smile.

"Oh yeah? What'd he do." She asked.

"Well, I don't want to spill his secrets," I looked at him and I noticed he was raising his eyebrow at me in amusement, "but it had something to do with a glare, a box, and a third world country. The look on the guys face was priceless. I think the guy may have peed himself." We both burst into hysterical giggles. A few minutes later the makeup crew was in our room putting on the finishing touches for our make up and hair and we were ready to go.

Tonight I was wearing matching silver sparkling skinny pants that rode low on my hips, and a halter top showing my midriff, front sunk low into my cleavage and my back was almost completely bare. My hair had been pulled away from my face, but let hang loose in the back and the curls were tamed into nice chunky tendrils. Beyonce wore an outfit that matched mine perfectly only in gold and her hair was worn in a similar fashion only straight.

Five minutes before show time the crew came down to get us and bring us to the stage. Ranger was holding my hand on the walk up and I squeezedit to let him know that I was here. I caught a glimpse of him from the corner of my eye and saw him smile slightly and then return the squeeze.

"Good luck up there. I'll be right here when you're done." He said to me as we stepped up to the side of the stage.

I turned and kissed him gently on the lips, "Have some fun tonight. Enjoy yourself. You're not just here for security, remember that, okay? I love you."

"I love you too." Ranger replies.

The lights on the stage when out and then the strobes started dancing. The band started to kick up the intro music and I put on my head mic and started to bounce in place. I rotated my neck a few times, rolled my shoulders and then gave Ranger another gentle kiss on the lips before stepping out on stage.

The intro music was playing and the lights were still out as I made my way to the center of the stage, the crowd was going nuts the longer the intro music played and then went silent when the lights shut off and the music stopped. I smiled to myself thinking 'oh boy what an entrance this will be'. The music started with one of my favorite songs, 'We R Who We R'*. Then we rolled right into the next song 'Disturbia'*, followed by 'Raise Your Glass'*.

The crowd was so loud it took a while to get everyone to calm down enough so I could talk to them.

"Hello Trenton. How is everyone tonight?" Waiting for them to calm down I was catching my breath before I spoke again. "I would like to thank each and every one of you for coming tonight. Being from Trenton myself, coming home is always a special treat, but tonight I'm extremely excited to let you know that all funds raised from tonight's concert will be donated to both the USO and the John Mitchell Foundation. Both organizations help to support our soldiers at home and abroad, as well as their families in times of need. Because of your support and generosity the heroes of our country and their families will be able to receive further assistance and entertainment."

"I have a couple of surprises in store for you this evening and I hope you will be as excited about them as I am. First off this evening I would like to welcome to the stage a few of my own favorite soldiers to play along with me this evening. I'm sure by now that you have heard of a cd being put together that will be going on sale next week in fact that has many of your favorite artists on it. Well, the songs that I chose to sing will be played here for you tonight, and the guys that are joining me on stage as we speak are the guys that played in the studio with me. So please give a warm Trenton Welcome to Lester on the Keyboard, Vince on the Guitar, Binkie on Base and Ram on the Drums."

There were loud screams from the crowd while the guy took their places. "Now Trenton, don't I have it good? Four Hot men playing with me this evening?" My regular band came out from the sides of the stage that they had made their escape to and stood close together crossing their arms over their chests and glaring at me like 'what about us' so the crowd could see them clearly. "Hey Trenton, do you think that I hurt their feelings?" The crowd cheered at my comment. "Really? Well how about you get to take a vote then? Who thinks my band is Hot and Sexy?" The crowd went insane with those comments. "Okay, okay. That's enough you'll swell their heads." I said. "Now Trenton, who thinks my soldier boys are Hot and Sexy?" The crowd once again goes insane, but there really didn't seem to be much of a difference in the volume. "Hmmm. It seems Trenton can't make up their minds boys." I tap my pointer finger to my chin. "How about this Trenton, we have my band take off their shirts and dance with me while my soldier boys play. And then," I paused, "Once my soldier boys are done I will have them switch and remove their shirts and dance with me as well. How does that sounds?"

That got a thunderous applause and it felt like the roof of the arena was going to come off. "Well guys, I think we have our answer. Are you all game?" I asked them all. My band glared at me, but complied without any fuss. "Well Trenton, I think I would have to be one of the luckiest girls in the world to be up here with eight Sexy, Sexy men don't you?" Screams and cheers came from all around before the guys were ready to go.

The song 'Keep Holdin On'* kicked up in the background and my band moved around the stage to spin me around and dip me. I moved around the stage and shook hands with those that were just at the foot of the stage, trying to pay particular attention to the kids in attendance. Before I knew it the song was over and we were moving into the second of our choices 'When Your Gone'*. I moved back to the guys playing and ran my hands over the shoulders of and down their sides, with the exception of Ram playing drums.

The songs came to an end quickly and the guys made their switch of places and as I was calling them 'my soldier boys' removed their shirts and got a round of very nice hoots and catcalls from the ladies down front. The next few songs the guys were more than happy to do a bit of dirty dancing with me and seemed to be enjoying every bit of their time on stage.

When their time was up I commented. "Well Trenton, it seems 'my soldier boys' are a bit shy and they've decided to retreat to the safety of backstage for now." I laughed. The crowd went wild when we continued for a few more songs without the guys as back up dancers.

"Alright Trenton, now I've got another surprise for you. A very good friend of mine was in the area and was happy to offer her services this evening to our little get together. Would you like to know who it is?" I asked and the sound was almost deafening.

"Well I'm glad you do, because here with me tonight is none other than Beyonce." The screams and cries came nonstop until the music we were going to sing together started and they went wild again, "Well thanks to the other members of Destiny's Child, we are able to sing a few songs from their days. We hope you enjoy it."

And with that we broke into 'Soldier'*, Beyonce worked the left stage, while I worked the right. We were each moving effortlessly across the stage together in opposite directions shimmying and shaking our bodies as we moved around. Then our second song came on 'Survivor'*. With this song we were able to strut even more and flaunt what god gave us, grind on the band and flirt with the guys in the audience.

Once the song ended Beyonce did a few of her songs while I made my way to get some water and get a kiss from Ranger. By the look on his face he didn't look too thrilled. "Everything okay?" I asked.

His lips set in a grim line, the only response I received was, "Mine.", before his lips descended on mine in a bruising kiss. Once he released me and I caught my breath I was laughing.

"Hmmm, are you a bit jealous?" I giggled again taking a sip of water.

"No." Ranger said tightly.

"Oh, too bad, I guess I have to kick it up a notch." I said as I walked out of his reach and headed back on stage. The concert was quickly winding down at this point. Thanking Beyonce again for her help I returned to the stage for a few more songs that allowed me to shake my body and strut some more making sure to let Ranger see just exactly where I was running my hands over my body. After about four more songs I thought I would put him out of his misery by pulling him out on stage for my last song 'Stutter'*. This one seemed to pacify him a bit when I changed the words from 'girl' to 'guy' so he knows I was singing it for him. I ground myself up and down on him. By the time the song was over I could tell he was very hard which made me smile inwardly.

"Thank you again Trenton, it was a blast to be back here on stage. I hope you enjoyed tonight as much as I did. Drive home safely." I walked off the stage and was ready to change and head back to Haywood.

**Sorry it took so long to get this up. More to come soon. I hope you enjoyed this one. **

*Songs listed above

We R Who We R, Artist Keisha

Disturbia, Artist Rhianna

Raise Your Glass, Artist Pink

Keep Holdin On, Artist Avril Lavinge

When Your Gone, Artist Avril Lavigne

Soldier, Artist Destiny's Child

Survivor, Artist Destiny's Child

Stutter, Artist Maroon 5


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ "Hmmm, are you a bit jealous?" I giggled again taking a sip of water._

_ "No." Ranger said tightly._

_ "Oh, too bad, I guess I have to kick it up a notch." I said as I walked out of his reach and headed back on stage. The concert was quickly winding down at this point. Thanking Beyonce again for her help I returned to the stage for a few more songs that allowed me to shake my body and strut some more making sure to let Ranger see just exactly where I was running my hands over my body. After about four more songs I thought I would put him out of his misery by pulling him out on stage for my last song 'Stutter'*. This one seemed to pacify him a bit when I changed the words from 'girl' to 'guy' so he knows I was singing it for him. I ground myself up and down on him. By the time the song was over I could tell he was very hard which made me smile inwardly. _

_ "Thank you again Trenton, it was a blast to be back here on stage. I hope you enjoyed tonight as much as I did. Drive home safely." I walked off the stage and was ready to change and head back to Haywood. _

XXXXXX

Arriving at the courthouse Monday morning it was a circus. The media was in a frenzy, the busy bodies of the 'burg were all in attendance trying to catch a glimpse of me, as well as get in the courtroom. It was absolute bedlam in Trenton, and for what? My mother's trial for her actions.

Judge Mendosa had been nice enough to move things around in his schedule to get this taken care of before I headed back to California so I wouldn't have to come back. The police were out in force as we all pulled up trying to keep the wolves at bay, but to little avail. Our group was rather large so it was going to be difficult for them to handle us all. We consisted of my dad, grandma, sister Val (who flew out when she heard Mom had been arrested), Ranger, Lester, Tank, Bobby, Ram, Cal, Hal, Emma and my attorney Mr. Watkins.

As we all stepped out of the cars the cameras went nuts. There was clicking coming from every direction and I was glad to realize that I had on my really big sunglasses to cover my bloodshot eyes from the hangover I was sporting. Last nights activities had definitely had a long lasting effect. The sun was bright in my face and I sort of winced at the amount of light that made it into my eyes. I glanced in Ranger's direction and noticed a small smile on his face and a little shake to his shoulders.

"You're proud of yourself?" I whispered to him as we walked down the walkway the police had cleared for us to walk. He had his arm around my waist as we walked pulling me close to him.

"Yes." his smile grew at his response.

"You have no remorse for what you did to me?" I asked.

"Nope, none." He replied.

"You did realize that we would have to sit through a boring trial this morning, didn't you?" I asked him.

"Yep, it'll give you something else to think about when it's really boring." He smirked.

I thought 'oh boy would it'. A little bit of drool must have collected at the corner of my mouth, because his hand came up to wipe it away with a chuckle.

As we entered the courthouse we were greeted by Joe and Eddie. "Hey there Steph." Eddie said.

"Hey Eddie." I replied. "Hi Joe. I'm sure you know everyone here."

"Yep." As Eddie stepped up to give my sister Val a hug. "I'm sorry about this Val, how are you?" he asked.

"Been better Eddie." She replied then noticing Joe, she timidly said, "Hey Joe."

Joe smiled brightly back at her, "Hi there Val. It's been a long time. How have you been?"

She seemed to warm at his words a bit, "Good, I'll be glad when this is over though."

The smile from his face dropped and he nodded his head. "Judge Mendoza asked that we be here for your group since we knew you. After the trial he asked me if he could have a word with you Steph."

A bit surprised by the request I replied, "Sure thing." Eddie and Joe followed us into the courtroom. I noticed that Joe was sitting with Val and they were talking. I saw a twinkle in her that had been missing for a long time. I knew that she had a crush on him in high school, like pretty much everyone else, and looking at them now I could see some kind of attraction there, but I guess we will have to see where that goes.

We spoke with my attorney briefly and everyone got settled for the closed courtroom proceedings. The trial moved at a snails pace at times and I began to let my mind wander out of pure boredom. Still wearing my sunglasses I was able to close my eyes and relax a bit.

_He was backing me into the bedroom of his apartment while striping us of our clothes and the bed came in contact with the back of my legs. Quicker that I realized he had scooped me up and was laying my on the center of the bed kissing me deeply. Once my body was where he wanted it he slowly ran his hands up the sides of my body in a feather like caress, making sure to drag his fingers over my very sensitive hips, then trailing over to my belly button and circling it, before returning to my sides. Once he reached my ribcage his hands changed directions again, tracing the bones until they reached my sternum, never making contact with my breasts. He continued to move his fingertips slowly circling but not quite touching them, but with each pass getting closer and closer to where I needed him to touch. I felt like my body was on fire already, and all he had done was tickle and kiss me. I tried to wiggle to get his hands where I wanted them, but he froze, ended the kiss and looked down at me from his kneeling position as he straddled my hips._

_ "No no, little Miss Tease. It's my turn." He replied. My eyes widened at his statement and the only thoughts that popped into my head were, 'oh boy' and 'I can't wait'. A evil smile appeared on his gorgeous face. _

_ He began to kiss me again, returning his hands to their previous work and moved them down my body this time. Starting at my ribcage and down the center of my body, avoiding all areas that would give me any satisfaction, he made a zigzag pattern over the tops of my thighs, making sure to move even slower over the insides of them, drawing a groan from my throat. He changed directions again heading up my body, trailing his fingers lightly over my already drenched lips and throbbing clit on their way up. His hand moved to my breasts after a while and he trailed around my nipples before pinching each one, ripping a moan from me and causing my back to arch into him. I tried to remain as still as possible and he must have realized that I was close to release, because the next thing I knew his hands moved to my arms, moving them above my head and tracking the very sensitive inside of them and then I felt something metal and cold on them and heard a clicking noise. Then his body was gone. My eyes popped open in surprise at this new situation and were glued to the dark chocolate almost black eyes staring down at me. _

I was nudged out of my daydream by Ranger asking if I was okay. I noticed he was wearing a very satisfied smirk on his face.

"Fine. Just bored." I replied.

"Hmmm. Bored? The little moans you were just making told me you weren't even paying attention. Care to share?" Ranger teased.

I looked at him and glared, then replied, "No." Damn the man had just interrupted my daydream and I had no idea how I would get back to where I was. He was still messing with me.

I looked back at the front of the courtroom and noticed that I was very tense. I was frustrated and turned on by the memories at the same time. Ranger placed his hand on my crossed leg and started to run his thumb back and forth with a light touch to get me to relax, but it was only making my problem worse. I was trying to listen to the lawyers speak as the proceedings went on, and had to take his hand in mine to stop the fire burning low in my belly. Grabbing his hand and holding it in both mine, the only problem with this was I could feel the warmth of his body radiate through me. I closed my eyes to try to focus on something else.

_There was a heavy smell of limes in the room and I couldn't understand where it was coming from. I tried to look around, but found that I was blindfolded, naked, and handcuffed to a bed with the silkiest sheets I had ever felt. Suddenly his lips were lightly kissing mine and then tracing my lower lips with his tongue I opened my mouth for his tongue, but was surprised when he placed something between my teeth and whispered to me to lightly bite down. When I did there was a bit of lime juice that flowed into my mouth. Then I felt a cool liquid being poured on my belly button. The contrast of my scorched skin and the cool liquid nearly sent me over the edge. But he reminded me not to move. It took a few minutes to get myself back under control, and when I finally did he attached his mouth to my navel and sucked the liquid away, then trailed kisses up my body, stopping to pay homage to my right breast, twirling his tongue over the nipple, but not putting any pressure behind it, just taunting me. He made it up to my neck and laved his tongue over my pulse point before moving up to my jaw line and tracing it with his tongue, before taking the lime wedge from my mouth. Not once had he placed any body part on me other than his mouth. I was squirming on the bed and needed release so badly I was almost willing to do anything. _

_ I heard him chuckle from next to me. "Almost anything hmmm? I guess I haven't done enough to you then." I groaned out loud at his comment. _

_ He repeated this torture over and over again, only changing the direction his tongue trailed, but after each one he would offer me my own shot and lime wedge. I was surprised when I realized that it wasn't tequila, but rather rum instead. He was making his own version of a Mojito body shot. It felt like it went on for hours, but my body was both humming from my building orgasm and the shots. His hands began to follow along the path of his mouth, as he did another shot and everywhere he touched it was like there was a path of fire where his hands went. When he reached my mouth to take the lime wedge that was currently residing there his hands started to move south by themselves. Tracing my breasts, tweaking my nipples circling my belly button then down my groin, heading exactly where I wanted him most. I tried to keep myself from raising my hips to move his hands as best I could. He was so close to where I wanted him I could taste it. He slowly moved his finger to just next to my clit and my lips._

I was nudged from my daydream again and I wanted to scream. I was so hot and bothered now I could explode in the courtroom. I glared at Ranger for the disruption and he smiled at me. He knew what my problem was and he was enjoying it. He leaned into to whisper in my ear, "Babe, care to share what you were thinking about? You sounded pretty happy there."

"No." I simply stated. My body was humming and having him whisper in my ear, his hot breath trailing down my neck was not helping. I was beyond frustrated. I needed a bathroom or a private space to take care of this problem. I didn't really care where it was I just needed the release before this got any worse.

"Babe, do you need some help there?" Ranger commented nuzzling my neck.

Before I could respond, I heard the prosecutor announce, "I would like to call Miss Stephanie Plum to the stand."

The only thought in my head at that moment was 'OH SHIT'. Ranger was chuckling next to me and gave my leg a gentle squeeze before I could stand up, try to adjust myself, and hope that there wasn't a giant wet spot on the back of my skirt and walk, a bit strangely I might add, to the stand to be sworn in. I threw up a quick prayer to god 'please help me'. I needed to get my body to calm down. But boy was Ranger going to pay for this later. I looked at him when I was seated and noticed the smirk on his face and I wanted to wipe it off.

**Oh boy. More to come. Let me know what you think. Was that nice of Ranger to do? Did he get enough payback for her teasing him? What will Steph do to him in return?**


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_"Babe, do you need some help there?" Ranger commented nuzzling my neck. _

_Before I could respond, I heard the prosecutor announce, "I would like to call Miss Stephanie Plum to the stand."_

_The only thought in my head at that moment was 'OH SHIT'. Ranger was chuckling next to me and gave my leg a gentle squeeze before I could stand up, try to adjust myself, and hope that there wasn't a giant wet spot on the back of my skirt and walk, a bit strangely I might add, to the stand to be sworn in. I threw up a quick prayer to god 'please help me'. I needed to get my body to calm down. But boy was Ranger going to pay for this later. I looked at him when I was seated and noticed the smirk on his face and I wanted to wipe it off. _

XXXXXX

Looking back at everyone in the courtroom I was so uncomfortable. I felt like I was going to explode, and not in a good way. My hormones are working in overdrive. I can't believe that this of all places is where he chose to tease me, well I guess that I have no one to blame but myself, I was the one daydreaming, but what the hell? I mean come on; we're in a fricking courtroom. And that's when I hear a voice coming to my rescue.

"Hey baby granddaughter," I look straight at my grandma and smile, I knew what she was doing, "since you're up there with the judge, catch a grope for me and let me know it's worth my time to take him for a test drive will ya?" Grandma asked. When she finished I heard groans from the men, a shriek from my mother, I noticed Val had her mouth dropped open, and I couldn't help but giggle. I turned my head to look at the judge and he looked a bit green honestly. I couldn't say that I blamed him; I'd be a little uncomfortable if I was him also. I turned to look back at all of my friends and the guys all seemed to look a little green with the exception of Lester. Apparently he had been groped so many times by grandma that he didn't seem to care.

It didn't take long for my mother to break out into one of her famous rants in the middle of the courtroom, but it didn't last long. The judge was banging his gavel, I think, thankful for something to derail uncomfortable pictures of what grandma had put in his head of her and him together. "Mrs. Plum, that is enough. You will not speak out of order in my courtroom. This is the only warning you will receive before I have you removed, and charged with contempt of court as well." He stated to my mother. I noticed she shut up quickly after that.

I looked at the judged and smiled, "I wouldn't dishonor you like that Judge Mendoza. My grandma has a bit of a thing for men in high positions." At that he just smiled, but somewhat recovered from his sickening green color. He nodded his head in acceptance.

Thanks to grandma my problem was solved rather quickly with that outburst. She always did know when I was uncomfortable, how I will never know and I don't want to even ask. Once things calmed down, I was asked to recount the attacks, both the one in LA at the After Party, and then here in Trenton. I spoke matter of factly without getting upset. The prosecutor also had me go over the video footage that was presented to the court of my mother's behavior.

After my testimony things seemed to go quickly after that. That was until it was grandma's turn to testify.

"Mrs. Mazur, has your daughter always acted this way towards her own daughter?" Asked the prosecutor.

"Oh yes. She has never supported anything that my baby granddaughter Stephanie has ever done. The woman has her head to far up the ass of those in the 'burg to see how special Stephanie is."

The judge banged his gavel. "Mrs. Mazur, please just stick to the facts." Commented the judge. "Please proceed."

"Yes, sir." Stated the prosecutor. "Mrs. Mazur, has your daughter ever taken advantage of the fact that her own daughter is in the public eye?"

"Oh yes, she has more than had her fair share of time in the spotlight since Stephanie became famous. She also touts her own success to the entire neighborhood, while badmouthing her daughter. She uses Stephanie's name to get into restaurants, get her time in the lime light with the TV stations and to get pretty much anything that she has wanted. There have been several places as well that will not welcome her back because of her rude behavior as well. There were several times that I know Stephanie's agent was called because of this. After about six months of repeated calls for complaints while Stephanie was out of the country for films or on tours there was a public announcement that stated no one was to give special treatment to Helen. Helen was informed of this and threw an absolute fit because of it. Helen has also been banned from Stephanie's homes." Grandma replied. "For some reason Helen feels that she is due something for Stephanie's success and that everyone should grovel at her feet. Honestly I can't wait to hear about her groveling at the feet of Big Bertha in the clink, because she doesn't want to be her BITCH." At that comment there was a collective gasp in the courtroom and Helen seemed to shrivel to the floor. A recess was called so that she could be checked out by the paramedics.

"Grandma, how could you say something like that about mom?" asked Valerie.

"Because she needs to see what it feels like to be treated like she treats others. Feeling like someone else's bitch for a change may just change her attitude, but I doubt it. She has always been a bitter woman, I don't know where I went wrong with her, but I won't help her after all she has done." Grandma explained.

I looked at Valerie and saw that she was leaning on Joe for support. "Remember Val, this is about Mom and her behavior, we did nothing to cause this. It's all her, no matter what she says. Aren't you glad you decided to stay out in California with me rather than being back here to have her harp on you?" I asked.

"Yeah, but I still don't know if all of this is a good idea." She sighed.

"Well, the blame falls on her for whatever happens. None of us are going to help her after this. She needs to learn that there are consequences to what she says and does. Honestly she acts like a spoiled child most of the time when she doesn't get her way." I replied. Ranger squeezed me tighter to him at my comment then kisses my temple. We had been having conversations about her over the last month and he helped me to see that I couldn't do anything to help her the way she was. She either got help, or she wouldn't, but we couldn't force her to get better. She had to want it for herself.

"Val, from everything that I've seen and heard, your mother is ill. She needs to get help, and maybe if its court assigned she will actually do it. Over the last several years she has gotten pretty bad and a lot of people won't even talk to her because of her attitude and scenes that she causes. And you know how much the 'burg loves to talk." Joe stated.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that I will have to like it. I feel like I should be there for her, she is my mother after all." Val said.

"Are you willing to put your children's lives on hold to help her? Because that is what will happen, she will take over and your life will become hers. Is that what you want Val?" I asked.

"Val, she's a grown woman and needs to see what she's done. Personally I think the Big House is where she belongs. Prison would knock some sense into her right away. Maybe Big Bertha could help her remove that big stick up her ass. Maybe loosen her up from the inside out a bit." Grandma replied.

I shivered at that thought. "Ewww, Grandma how could you say such a thing?" Val said.

Court was called back into session and my mother had been taken to the hospital after being sedated. The Judge asked if there was any further evidence to present, which thankfully there was not. Without taking a recess to think the judge had decided to find my mother guilty on all charges and was having her evaluated by a psychologist with the possibility of being sent to the psychiatric ward. Not much of a surprise there. I was surprised to be asked if there would be anyone willing or available to take care of her if that was the route things went once she was released. Honestly he was looking straight at me when he asked this.

I stood up and spoke, "Your Honor, with all due respect, she has been given more than enough chances by all of us from her family. We have discussed this as a family and have agreed that none of us would step up and assist her if she was released. She has caused too much pain in all of our lives as it is, and I don't think that it would be fair for any of us to put our lives on hold for her when she never did it for us. I know this may sound callous, but she can go to one of her friends that she holds so dearly in the 'burg if anyone will take her. We may keep an ear out for how she is doing, but we will not be the ones to support and take care of her. If there are any questions that need to be answered my attorney is more than capable of answering them." I had to choke back a tear and a sob that was threatening to come out. I agreed with Val that this was our mother, but there was just too much she had done to me in particular to do anything to help her.

"That is understandable, but I needed to ask for the paperwork. Court is adjourned. Good luck to you all." stated Judge Mendoza. He smiled at me and then left for his chambers through the door.

"Well, at least that's over. I still hope she goes to jail, that could be some prime gossip." Grandma commented.

I shook my head at her and laughed. We all gathered our stuff and headed out of the courtroom. As soon as we made it to the hallway Joe tapped on my shoulder, "Remember Judge Mendoza wanted to speak with you after it was over. Do you have a minute or two to speak with him?"

I sighed, "Sure thing Joe." I turned to Ranger, "Do you want to head back and I'll meet you there?" I asked him.

"I can wait. I'll be in the hall if you need me." Ranger stated flatly.

"I think I'll be ok. Really." I giggled at the jealously showing clearly on his face. "By the way, you're so going down." I said and walked off with Joe towards the Judges chambers.

"You two certainly have an interesting relationship." Joe laughed. "Do you always challenge each other like that?"

"Not always, but it certainly keeps thing interesting." I laughed, noticing that Ranger was not that far behind us.

Joe knocked on the judge's chamber and we were invited in quickly. The judge was comfortable behind his desk and when he looked up and saw us he quickly stood and walked around and offered his hand to shake. "Miss Plum, thank you for agreeing to see me. There were a few things that I wanted to ask you about. I hope you don't mind."

"Well Your Honor, that really depends on the topic. Please call me Stephanie." I replied with a smile.

"Please call me John." I nodded my head in acceptance. "Please take a seat. The main reason that I wanted to speak with you was because of your foundation. I have some contacts that need some assistance and I wanted to ask if you might be able to help them. All of the names that I would be giving you would need to remain free of any contact with me. They have refused any assistance I have attempted to offer in the past and I heard about The John Mitchell Foundation from the Mayor as well as a few contacts I have in DC."

I nodded my head in understanding. "The Foundation and I will do anything that we can to assists."

We spoke for a bit about his contacts and I let him know exactly how to contact me with the more personal information for them. This way there would be no paper trail back to him through the Foundation. There were several families that he knew that had lost their ability to hold a job, depression, lost limbs, lost lives, nothing that I hadn't heard before, but it always brought tears to my eyes.

"The next thing I wanted to ask was if you would be willing to help out with the fundraiser the city is putting on for the Police and Fire Departments. The budget cuts have hit us hard in recent years and because you are a home town girl, we were hoping that you would be willing to donate some items to the auction." John replied.

"Why don't you go ahead and send my business manager some ideas of what you would like, or what you feel would generate the most money and we can work something out. I will be in New York in a few weeks on Broadway. I could always get some tickets for that as a donation I'm sure. After that I'll be going on a short tour, mainly here on the East Coast, maybe some tickets to one that is local as well. That shouldn't be a problem either." I commented.

"Thank you so much for your generosity. I especially appreciate it." John commented.

"It's my pleasure. I enjoy helping others. That's why today has been so difficult on me." I sighed.

"I completely understand that. I don't hold your decisions against you. I have heard about you for a long time, and what your mother has done to you. I would do the same thing if I were in your shoes." John said.

"Thank you. If that's all I should get going, we have an early flight in the morning." I replied.

"Yes of course. Will you be taking your grandmother with you?" John asked. I could see the hope in his eyes.

"Yes." I laughed. "Lucky for you she lives with me in California, so you're safe by about 3000 miles. Now if you came out West, she would probably try to hunt you down." I laughed.

A look of fear came over his face. I laughed, "I'll make sure she leaves you alone. California has many people out there that keep her busy. Some that are even more forward than she is." At that comment he stared at me for a moment, then shook his head to clear it.

"Thank you again Stephanie. It was a pleasure to meet you." He smiled.

"You as well John, I look forward to hearing from you." I said as I opened the door to see Ranger standing in the hall and his head came up as I was stepping through the doorway. Joe following me out the door.

Ranger wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me closer and whispered in my ear, "Why are you looking forward to hearing from him Babe?"

I laughed internally. I smiled at him, kissed his cheek and said, "Are you jealous?" I got an eyebrow raised at me for that. "Hmmmm."

**Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up. These last two weeks have been crazy. Swimming classes started up and this week we added Day Camp for my daughter. Now my dad comes in to town tonight and then he leaves with my son on Saturday. Wow 2 weeks without my son. This is going to be hard, but I'll be able to get more writing done so that it can help pass the time while he's gone. Thank you for being so patient. **

**For all of you who reviewed THANK YOU so much. I tried to respond to everyone, but if I didn't please let me tell you that they mean so much to me to hear what you think. I have become a review slut like most others. Never thought it would happen, but it did. Haha. I look forward to each and everyone.**

**So what did you think? Too much? Not enough? **


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_"Thank you again Stephanie. It was a pleasure to meet you." He smiled. _

_"You as well John, I look forward to hearing from you." I said as I opened the door to see Ranger standing in the hall and his head came up as I was stepping through the doorway. Joe following me out the door. _

_Ranger wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me closer and whispered in my ear, "Why are you looking forward to hearing from him Babe?"_

_I laughed internally. I smiled at him, kissed his cheek and said, "Are you jealous?" I got an eyebrow raised at me for that. "Hmmmm."_

XXXXXX

The day had been long and we all decided to go out for dinner since the trial was now over. Since it was a Monday night most restaurants would be rather slow, so we decided to head to Rosinni's. Ranger called on our way there to hopeful reserve the private room which we found out was available. Our rather large group would be growing in size once we got to the restaurant, as any Rangemen that were not able to make it to the trial today would join us when their shift ended.

Pulling in the parking lot I squeezed Rangers hand slightly and smiled at him. "After dinner we can head back and it will just be the two of us the rest of the night." I gave him a wicked grin and received a wolf grin in return.

"I can't wait Babe. I've wanted to be inside you all day, and those little moans and signs you were making in the courtroom weren't helping." He took my hand and kissed the palm. "I can never get enough of you Babe." He then leaned over the console and gave me a gentle kiss.

All too soon there was a knock on the window of the passenger door. "Are you two coming, or do we need to drag your asses out of the car." Grandma asked.

I whispered, "I wish." to Ranger who silently laughed, and then spoke louder through the window, "We'll be there in a second." I sighed not wanting to lose the contact with him.

"Come on, we don't need to get caught by your grandma." He laughed.

"You mean again right? The last time she interrupted us, I believe you were in the more compromising position than I was." I smiled at him. "But I have to say the thought of you in that position again is certainly getting my hormones jumping."

He grunted. "You at least had some clothes on. I had to lay there until she left the room. You weren't exactly helpful with getting her out of the room either. You carried on a fricking conversation with her while I had to lay there covered in chocolate pudding. I was afraid to move for fear that it would come off of strategic places and leave nothing to her imagination." He shivered at the image that brought to mind. "She was leering at me enough as it was."

I was full on laughing at his discomfort. Once I calmed down we were stepping out of the car I replied, "She has a great imagination." I had to pause to catch my breath, "Hey I think I made it up to you pretty well at the time. You seemed to enjoy all the extra attention that you received that night and the next day. Anyway, I had a talk with her and she knows not to come into the bedroom when the door is closed, but we may want to lock the door in the future just to be on the safe side." I grabbed his hand, kissed his lips and we walked together into Rosinni's.

XXXXXX

After we had all been seated and ordered our food the conversation was light and everyone seemed to be getting along. Our group was quiet large since Joe and Eddie had joined us as well as my attorney. Joe was sitting with Val and they seemed to be getting along quite famously. Bobby, Emma and Danny were sitting together and you could see the happiness on their faces. Danny appeared to be bouncing in her seat and her mouth was moving a mile a minute. I was so happy for my friends and my god daughter, they all deserved to be happy again. My dad and Eddie were talking and the Rangeman guys were all telling jokes and laughing up a storm.

Grandma's voice broke through all of the noise and asked, "Hey Steph, when we get back to the house tomorrow are you going to deal with that ass wipe from your security company?"

"Yeah grandma. We will go ahead and deal with it first thing. Why?" I asked her.

"Well, I wanted to have one of my parties while you were here in New York and I was going to ask if I could use the house." She commented.

"Can you keep the police out of it this time?" I asked her.

"I can try, but you know those California types, they like to party and party hard." She replied with a wicked smile.

"Do I need to warn the chief again grandma?" I giggled.

"Probably a good idea, better safe than sorry." She said shrugging her shoulders.

"What problem with security Babe? You didn't say anything before." Ranger asked.

"Well, there have been some breaches while we've been gone this week. Randy is on vacation and the security company that does my house has been called out three times and each time they go they find evidence that someone has been there, but they don't find anyone. I'll have to look and see what type of damage has been done if any. It's not the first time this has happened, but it is irritating that they are not catching this person. They don't even have an idea of how many people are doing this." I replied.

"Babe, I don't like the idea of you staying there by yourself while this is taking place. Maybe you could just stay here?" Ranger asked.

"I can't. I have some interviews that are scheduled for the next two weeks before I come back to New York. The CD is being released this coming week and I have some work to do with the Foundation before I head back. Hopefully I can get the security system taken care of ASAP. Randy is meeting us at the airport and will be with me all the time. And I won't be alone, Emma, Danny and Grandma will be there. Plus Daddy is coming with me.

"I'd still feel better if you stayed here. Is your security system being looked over completely? Are they going to do any upgrades? How about security cameras?" He asked.

"I want a complete overhaul of the security system since this is not the first time. They should be able to catch who ever this is for the amount of money I pay them. I will have them add exterior security cameras to the property. Let me know what you suggest and I'll insist that they use that." I commented.

"Alright, I'll get you a list of equipment that we use for personal properties tonight." Ranger says.

"Would you be willing to set up a new security system at the penthouse in New York? It's the same security company as in LA, but since yours is closer I want you to handle it if you don't mind. No expense spared. You know what our lives entail so do what you think is best. Bobby has a key and can get you in, I'll add you to the list for the building and get you a key of your own." I smiled at him.

He kissed my lips and nose then said, "Anything you want Babe, it's yours."

"Hey Steph, when will you be coming back? What do you have planned in LA anyway?" asked Eddie.

"Well, I have some radio interviews to push the sales of the CD being released next week. I also have an interview with Jay Leno. I challenged him to a race and he was finally able to work it into his schedule for next week. I have some things I need to go over with the Foundation and a few new names that we need to contact," I looked at Joe and smiled, "and I need to get everything set up since I will be away for more than six weeks. The show starts July 10, but I have some rehearsals to do before that starts." I explained.

"Any chance any of us will get to see you Beautiful. I've seen the movie and I can't wait to see it live. What part are you playing?" Lester asked.

"I'm playing Velma Kelly, she's one of my favorite characters in the show. Plus I get to strut my stuff on stage in sexy lingerie." I heard a growl come from Ranger beside me and saw some wolf grins on some of the guys. "It should be a good show. I even get to use a stripper pole." That got a round of groans from them, even Ranger that time.

I was laughing along with my Grandma and Dad. "Daddy you were planning on coming back out to New York with me right?"

"Sure thing Pumpkin. I wouldn't miss it. I may stay at the house in Trenton to get some of my stuff packed from the house as well." Daddy said.

"Val are you going to bring the girls out? Since it's summer they can have a good time seeing the sights." I offered. "Maybe even take a trip up to Maine if you wanted with them."

I could see the sparkle in her and Joe's eyes at the suggestion. "I'll talk to them, I'm sure that they would love to. They love to spend time with their Aunt Steph too."

I laughed, "I'll see if there are any premiers I can take them to, depending on my schedule. I know they love to do that."

I heard Joe whisper to my sister, "I'd love to see them. Would it be okay if I tagged along sometime while you were here with them?" He asked. I saw Val blush and nod her head.

I turned to Ranger and kissed him gently on the cheek, "I think there may be another happy couple in the making right there. What do you think?" I nuzzled into him and he turned to look. A small smile crept across his lips.

"I think so too." He commented, then his smile disappeared. "I still don't like the idea of you going back home with a security problem. Let me come back with you? It's only for two weeks."

"Ranger you have meetings you need to attend. I'll be fine. I'm not letting someone scare me out of my home. I won't be alone and if needed I can always ask Uncle Mike to come and stay with us as well. You know Randy, my dad and Uncle Mike are all well trained with weapons, I am too. It will get taken care of, no need to worry about me." I kissed his lips and smiled up at him.

The rest of dinner went by quickly and before we knew it, it was time to head back for the evening. I was way past ready to have my way with my man, and I knew I would need to make it last for two weeks. It was going to be a long night, but well worth it.

**So what did you think? Her schedule will be busy the two weeks and I will be working on getting as much of it out this week. I hope you enjoyed this installment. Thanks again fro all of your reviews. They mean the world to me. More to come shortly. **


	33. Chapter 33

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ "I think so too." He commented, then his smile disappeared. "I still don't like the idea of you going back home with a security problem. Let me come back with you? It's only for two weeks."_

_ "Ranger you have meetings you need to attend. I'll be fine. I'm not letting someone scare me out of my home. I won't be alone and if needed I can always ask Uncle Mike to come and stay with us as well. You know Randy, my dad and Uncle Mike are all well trained with weapons, I am too. It will get taken care of, no need to worry about me." I kissed his lips and smiled up at him. _

_ The rest of dinner went by quickly and before we knew it, it was time to head back for the evening. I was way past ready to have my way with my man, and I knew I would need to make it last for two weeks. It was going to be a long night, but well worth it._

XXXXXX

The ride back to Haywood was a bit tense and I figured I knew why he wasn't talking at this point, it wasn't the usual driving zone that Ranger went into this time. I figured I should try to unruffled some feathers.

"You know I wasn't trying to keep the security problem from you. I figured I would go to you if it wasn't resolved by the company, but I honestly forgot about it. This isn't something that's new to me, although I have to say that it pisses me off that it's taking place at my home. This past week has just been so busy that it slipped my mind." I tried to explain.

"I can understand that you were busy, but your safety is important to me. If you had told me about it I would have had it taken care of while we were here. I would have felt a lot better about you going home without me this time. Now I'm worried about you more than normal." He explained.

"I'm sorry. I know I should have said something, but I'm going to call and have a full overhaul of the security system. I will call while on the flight and have them come out when we get there. Randy will be there with me, and like I said my dad and Uncle Mike if I need." I assured him. "I'll let you know if I still need any help, but don't worry about me, I've taken care of myself all this time, I'll be fine."

"I know, but until I know they have found out who is causing these problems, and breaking into your home I won't feel any better. I wish you would let me come back with you. I can postpone my meetings or Tank can take them." He replied.

"You will not put your business on hold for me. We've talked about this before. You're needed here right now, I'll be back in two weeks and then we'll have plenty of time together. If I didn't know that these meeting were with some of the most important clients that you had set up for this week I wouldn't have a problem with it, but you're needed here right now." I said.

He nodded his head in acceptance, but I still saw a tight set to his jaw. I reached over to stroke his cheek, he took it in his hand and kissed the top of my hand lightly, "I love you Ranger."

"I love you too Babe." He said and glanced at me with a small smile on his face, his eyes were a bit darker than their usual chocolate brown.

Pulling into the parking garage and parking in his usual space we looked at each other. I think we were both thinking how much the next two weeks would be difficult without each other. Honestly the longer we are together the harder it gets to separate for any period of time. It was starting to make me wonder how we would work things out to be together more often.

Exiting the car we slowly made our way to the elevator to head to the seventh floor. In the elevator he held me close to him, his front to my back and I could tell how much he wanted me. I thought I would test the waters and wiggle against him. I laughed internally when he growled at me and pulled me tighter against him. I leaned my head back on his shoulder and turned my head so I could nibble on his earlobe which elicited a moan from his chest. When I let go I blew on it slightly which sent a shiver through his body. When the doors finally opened he swept me off my feet and fobbed his way into his apartment. Opening the door and never breaking his stride he slammed the door closed and headed straight for the bedroom.

I giggled at him when he tossed me into the middle of the bed and started to strip out of his clothes. Since we seemed to be in the same mind set I figured I might as well make things easier for him and removed my clothing for him. Within seconds of the clothes being thrown to the floor in a pile he was covering my body with his. My hands immediately went to his hair and pulled his mouth down to mine for an urgent kiss. I was going to savor the taste of him tonight and hope that it would last for a while.

I ran one hand down his back and the other down his chest slowly, trying to memorize every inch of his muscled body. My fingers traced every rib and muscle of his well defined abs. I broke the kiss to move to his jaw and he allowed me to roll us over so that I was on top of him and I could taste every inch of his skin I wanted to. I kissed, licked, and sucked my way down his body, stopping to pay homage to the joint of his shoulder and neck, then his nipples, making sure that I gave each one attention, my hands were still travelling down his body and reached his cock which I was pumping and caressing gently. He was already hard as a rock, but his skin felt smooth as silk. Licking the outline of his muscled abs he was groaning in pleasure.

When I finally reached his cock with my mouth I traced his member lightly around the head with my tongue, while still pumping his shaft. I moved my other hand to roll his balls in my hand and pulled on them lightly as I took him deeper into my mouth. He hissed in pleasure, which made me smile and his hands went to my hair massaging my scalp. The deeper I took him the more pressure he applied on my scalp. I was so turned on by his massage that I speed up my movements. It only took a few moments before he was begging for release. I was hearing a hissed 'please Babe' when I would slow up just a bit or change the pressure. He finally grew impatient and took over the pace pumping my head and his hips in a rhythm that had him on the edge almost immediately. I grabbed his balls harder and felt them tighten as he spilled his cum deep into the back of my throat, roaring my name, and I swallowed him down with pleasure. As soon as he was spent I released him and smiled up at him. His breathing was labored and I could see a smile on his face.

Before I knew it I was on my back with my legs thrown over his shoulders and his face buried between my legs. He immediately had me on the edge as he delved into my core with two fingers and attacked my clit with his tongue. He was alternating pressure, and then would release it completely. He was alternating massaging my breasts with his free hand, tweaking and flicking my nipple. When I was on the edge he would release my clit, but continue to pump in and out of me with his fingers. He started to talk to me, pausing between each sentence to torture me even more, but I couldn't make out everything he was saying right away, I was so close it was torture, "You're going to miss this aren't you Babe?" Licking my clit. "You're going to have to take care of yourself for a few days aren't you Babe?" Adding a third finger and pumping faster. "But it won't be the same will it?" A teasing flick of my clit. I was moaning in pleasure, shaking my head no. "You sure you don't want me to come with you?" He increased his speed with his hand and started to curl his fingers in the come here motion. 'Please' I was begging and panting. "What do you say Babe? Can I come with you?" Another flick of my clit. I was shaking my head no. "Tell me I can come with you and I will let you cum now Babe. Say it." He flicked my clit again with his tongue. I finally screamed 'Yes', he bit down on my clit and pumped harder and faster and I was off like a rocket, screaming his name.

As soon as I was coming down he released my legs and lowered me down to the bed again and entered me to the hilt without hesitation. He didn't let me come down all the way, he was already working me up into the next orgasm, pumping in and out of me while talking again, "See Babe, you'd miss this too much. I love to make you cum and scream my name." He slowed the speed of his pumps, but was caressing my side up to my breast, "I can't get enough of you Babe." he said taking my breast in his mouth and causing me to go off again, my pussy grabbing onto him and with every stroke, I couldn't get enough. I pulled his head from my breast and kissed him with everything that I had, when we both needed air we were both on the edge again.

"I love you." I said. Grabbing his ass cheeks with my hands to pull him even closer and deeper, I said, "I need you with me."

A very large smile was plastered across his face and he said, "I love you too." We both went crashing over the edge together moaning into each others mouths. Once we were spent we rolled to our sides and just held each other.

"I'll finish up the meetings I have scheduled for tomorrow and then come out in a day or two. Tank will be able to handle everything else." He said.

"Okay, I love you. I just didn't want you to change your plans for me. I want you with me Ranger."

"And I want you with me. I love you Babe, nothing will ever change that."

**Alright so what did you think? A good resolution? I hope you enjoyed this one. More to come soon. **


	34. Chapter 34

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ "I love you." I said. Grabbing his ass cheeks with my hands to pull him even closer and deeper, I said, "I need you with me." _

_ A very large smile was plastered across his face and he said, "I love you too." We both went crashing over the edge together moaning in to each others mouths. Once we were spent we rolled to our sides and just held each other. _

_ "I'll finish up the meetings I have scheduled for tomorrow and then come out in a day or two. Tank will be able to handle everything else." He said._

_ "Okay, I love you. I just didn't want you to change your plans for me. I want you with me Ranger."_

_ "And I want you with me. I love you Babe, nothing will ever change that."_

XXXXXX

The flight left as planned first thing in the morning even though I really didn't want to be apart from Ranger. It made me HOT and smile a huge smile to think about his method of negotiating. The memory of what happened last night had me ruining my panties on the spot and fanning myself.

"Hey Pumpkin you okay over there?" Daddy asked.

I flushed bright red, but managed to respond, "Yeah, I'm fine, just a bit warm." He smiled at me and went back to reading his paper.

Our group consisted of Daddy, Grandma, Emma, Danny and myself. Ranger would be arriving at some point tomorrow or the next day depending on when he could get away. I still felt guilty, but at the same time I was so happy he wanted to be with me. I had also promised him that I would take care of my security issues ASAP. I pulled out my cell phone and called the security company, I don't care what time it was on the west coast.

"McGuire Security, how can I help you?" asked a female voice.

"Peter McGuire please, this is Stephanie Plum. And if he isn't there I want him tracked down now thank you." I said.

"Absolutely Ms. Plum, just a moment." She replied sweetly. I was placed on hold and a few moments later I was connected to the man himself.

"Stephanie, How are you?" asked Peter.

"I would be fine if my property wasn't being breached on what seems to be a regular basis now. Peter the police are getting to my property before you, why is that?" I asked.

"Well Stephanie, we have been running a little low on man power recently, but I assure you that we are taking care of the problem." Peter explained.

"And what are you doing to correct the problem exactly?" I asked. There was a pause before he answered.

"Well, we have increased the patrols in the neighborhood and are looking for more employees currently." He explained.

"Would you like to explain to me when you increased patrols?" I asked.

"About a month ago." He said proudly.

"Well then I think you have a problem." I paused to emphasize my point. "Are you not aware that someone breached my property this past week again? And would you explain to me, with the amount of money that I pay you every month that your lack of employees is my problem. These are things that you should be on top of, or is your customer service not at the top of your priority." I asked.

"Well, I was not aware of your recent problem, but I thought you should know of our difficulty." He said.

"I don't care, because the level of service should be your top priority. But I will tell you I want a crew over at my house by 10am this morning to do a complete overhaul of the system. I pay you to keep my property safe, not just to throw you an enormous amount of money each month." I said frustrated.

"Stephanie, I don't think that we will be able to accommodate you today," I cut him off.

"That is not acceptable. Either you have a team at my property when I arrive to look at the system that you installed or I will be removing all of your equipment and going with another company." I said.

"I'll see what I can do Stephanie." He said. "But I can't make any promises."

"Either they are there when I arrive or you will lose over five million dollars in business each year, plus I will tell everyone that I know how un-secure their properties and businesses are being with your firm." I said harshly. I closed my phone not wanting to hear his response. I sat back in my seat trying to calm myself down, the man just didn't know how to run a company and deal with his clients. And he was a CEO? What an idiot!

I felt a presence to my left and opened my eyes to look at Emma. "I'm sure we'll get things worked out." She said.

"I'm not willing to take the security of any of us for granted Emma." I said looking straight at her. "Danny is there, Grandma is there, your there. I'm not willing to let anyone in my family be hurt. It will get resolved, even if I have to get a new company to secure our home." I explained.

"I know. You always put us first, but you need to think of yourself first once in a while too." She looked at me right in the eye. "Did you explain it to Ranger?"

"Yes he knows everything. I wasn't trying to keep it from him, it's just been such a part of my life for so long that I kind of rolled with it. He was pretty upset though." I explained. "He's coming out tomorrow or the next day to see if he can help with it. I just feel bad that he's taking time away from his company for it." I explained.

"Steph, this is his business. Security is his life, that and you. The way he looks at you, it's like the world starts and stops with you. He'd do anything for you." Emma explained.

"Yeah well, I'd do the same for him, honestly." I said. "How are things going with Bobby? You two seem to be getting really close, not that you weren't before, but you know what I mean." I said.

"Things are going well, but I miss him when he's not around. Danny can't stand to be away from him." She sighed. "Am I doing the right thing here Steph?"

"What do you mean?" I asked completely at a loss.

"Getting involved with Bobby? If things end badly, Emma won't have Bobby in her life." She said.

"Hey that's not true and you know it. Bobby would never leave Danny, and I don't think that you have anything to worry about, Bobby looks at you like you say Ranger looks at me. He would die for you two. Why would you doubt that?" I asked.

"I see how he looks at you sometimes." She said softly.

"Emma, you know how things are between Bobby and I, we were never meant to be together forever. I love him, more than a brother, and I love you more than a sister, but you two were meant to be together. Do you understand?" I asked and she nodded.

"I just wish there was a way for us all to be together more. Sometimes seeing him for a month and then not for two is just hard." She explained.

"I know what you mean, but we'll figure something out." I said. "Who knows. Maybe they can open a branch out here." I said jokingly.

Her eyes widened. "Do you think they could?" I was kind of shocked by her question. I hadn't really given it much thought honestly. I know that Ranger had expressed interest in becoming a nationwide company. Would he really be interested in doing it now? I guess I could ask him. Who knows. I'd even be willing to buy into the business if it was a financial strain on the other offices.

"I guess they could. It never hurts to ask or make the suggestion. It might save the hassle of finding a new security company." I thought it would anyway. "Well, lets see what happens when we get home. Peter didn't seem to think this whole thing was that big of a problem. He doesn't seem to be very customer service friendly honestly, which is very disappointing."

"Well, he's probably let his success go to his head. I know when he first started out a few years ago he was ecstatic to have your business." Emma explained. "Do you think it could work out if they opened a branch here? I would hope that Bobby would be willing to move out here, but I don't want to put too much pressure on him." She explained.

"I think he would jump at the opportunity to be here with you. Don't doubt his love for you Emma. He's been in love with you for a long time." I smiled at her when her eyes lit up.

"I've loved him for so long Steph, I guess I'm just afraid it's not real." She said sadly. "After John, I was afraid to hope for anything that good, and now that I've found it, it almost seems like a dream." She explained.

"John would want you to be happy Emma, we all do, and Bobby does that. Anyone with half a brain can see that. Danny loves him too, you couldn't ask for a better man in her life other than her father. Bobby will take care of both of you for the rest of your lives." I said walking over to her to give her a hug.

A few hours later we were landing in LA and exiting the plane. I saw Randy a short distance from us and caught the look on his face. Something was off and I wasn't sure I was looking forward to finding out what exactly this was.

**Sorry for the delay in getting this update out to you. More to come shortly, I got caught up with the other story that I am writing, but I now have several chapters of this one outlined so I know what is going to happen. Updates will not take as long. I hope you enjoyed this one. **


	35. Chapter 35

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

Previously…

"John would want you to be happy Emma, we all do, and Bobby does that. Anyone with half a brain can see that. Danny loves him too, you couldn't ask for a better man in her life other than her father. Bobby will take care of both of you for the rest of your lives." I said walking over to her to give her a hug.

A few hours later we were landing in LA and exiting the plane. I saw Randy a short distance from us and caught the look on his face. Something was off and I wasn't sure I was looking forward to finding out what exactly this was.

XXXXXX

The ride back to the house was tense, I could feel the anger coming off of Randy in droves and I couldn't take it any longer.

"What's up? Is it that bad?" I asked.

"It's not necessarily that the damage is bad, some plants and graffiti, but the worst part about this whole thing is that the security company doesn't seem to care that there's a problem. This latest issue we had the company didn't even show up." He explained.

"I spoke with Peter McGuire on the plane and the guy seems to think that I should be understanding of their lack of employees and that the problems and lack of service we have been receiving is being dealt with. I think one of the things that I am most concerned with, beside his complacency in this, is the fact that we aren't catching the person or persons doing this. I'm tired of this happening and it will be resolved now." I said.

"Yeah the guy is a real jerk, and his staff members aren't much better. I think we should have some additional help on the property until this is resolved. It was one thing when you weren't here, but with all of you back I think it would be a good idea. At least until we catch who ever it is." Randy said seriously.

"Yeah I was thinking about that too. Ranger is coming out tomorrow. At first I didn't think he could do anything but the more I think about it, maybe we could convince him to open a branch out here. What do you think?" I asked.

"Honestly I think it's a great idea. I know that he said that was a long term plan when I spoke with him, but I don't think it would take much to get him to speed up the process." He smiled at me.

"Are you ready to assist in handing Mr. McGuire his ass with me when he arrives?" I asked looking at him with a huge smile.

"I wouldn't miss this opportunity." Randy laughed.

"Well he will be here at 10am this morning to do a complete overhaul of the security system." I informed him.

XXXXXX

The buzzer on the gate sounded and Randy and I were there to greet our security companies CEO and staff that would be doing the work. This was going to be an interesting meeting. They showed up thirty minutes late. Way to start this on the wrong foot McGuire. The cars pull up in front of the house and a crew of ten men step out all looking around the property. Over the years I had interacted with many of the staff of McGuire security and not one of these men had been on my property that I had seen. I looked to Randy to see his impression and saw a blank face, something I had not seen in the many years Randy had been with me. Randy had been with me since he was honorably discharged from the military for medical needs and I have always been able to read him and I could see that he was not happy right now.

Before we were approached by any of the men I asked Randy, "Recognize any of them?" and I received a shake of his head in the negative.

The men started to approach with big smiles on their faces and Peter McGuire was in the lead. "Ms Plum, it's a pleasure to see you again." Peter said extending his hand to me, I noticed there was no apology for his late arrival.

I extended my hand to him with a slight smile I was interested in seeing what he had to say before I jumped down his throat. "Peter, how are you?"

"Very well thank you. These men all volunteered to come out to see you and take care of your security problem as requested." Peter volunteered with a smile. "Everyone of them is a fan of yours and couldn't wait to meet you."

I was floored and angered by his comments, this is a business not an opportunity to meet the stars. "I'm more than happy to meet fans, but I want my security problems taken care of. You do realize that you are more than thirty minutes late?" I asked.

"Well with traffic it was unavoidable." He brushed it off like it was nothing. I looked at Randy and saw the tight line to his lips and knew he was thinking the same thing I was.

"I want a complete overhaul to the security system, that you installed previously, obviously this one is inadequate and is not doing it's job. Are any of your men familiar with the system installed on my property? None of them have been here previously Peter." I said flatly.

The look on his face was priceless. He looked stunned that I would shift gears so quickly. "The system that we installed is the typical system that we use and we will be replacing all of the cameras and sensors. It shouldn't take more than two hours to do." Peter stated simply.

I handed him the list that Ranger had given me before we left this morning. "Are any of the sensors and cameras that you are replacing on this list? Do you use any of this equipment?" I asked.

He looked it over and I could see the furrow in his brow when he looked at me, "No these are not the type that we use Ms. Plum. We use a different brand entirely." He replied.

"Are you adding anything to my property in addition to the current system that has not done it's job?" I asked with my arms crossed over my chest. Randy never moved from my side.

"We were just going to replace the existing ones. There is no need to add anything at this time actually." He said.

"Well I find that very interesting since you can't seem to catch who ever is doing this. That tells me that there are not enough camera and sensors on the property. Wouldn't you say Peter?" I asked.

When he didn't respond right away Randy asked, "Do you even have the area where the exterior damage is taking place under surveillance?" Randy asked. "I see no cameras in that area. How can you automatically say you don't need to add anything? Don't you think you need to look at the system first?"

"Well, we will take a look around and find out what is happening." He said gruffly.

I looked around at the men that had arrived with Mr. McGuire and they were all staring at me with wide eyes and giant smiles on their faces. These were the looks that I got from fans, not professionals from other companies. I was irritated to say the least. The lack of professionalism was grating on my nerves more and more with each passing second.

"How long have these men been with your company? And are they here on their time off or are these men that volunteered to be pulled from other duties to help you out?" I asked.

"A few have been with us for two years the rest have been with my company for between one to three months. And all of these men volunteered to work on their time off so they could meet you." Peter explained.

"Well you do realize that this is a job, Mr. McGuire, not a social visit correct?" asked Randy.

I found myself trying to stifle a giggle at Randy's comment, but I completely agreed with him. Informing me of this only made me feel they wanted to be here to meet me instead of fixing my problem. Peter was not doing anything but digging a deeper hole with me.

"Yes, we are well aware of that." Peter commented roughly.

"Not very professional of you to bring that up then is it Mr. McGuire?" Randy asked. "Ms. Plum's safety and that of her family should be you first concern since you are supposed to be the one running the company, not the fact that your employees get to met the stars who's homes you are supposed to be protecting and seem to be failing at."

"My company is not failing in it's duties." Peter snapped.

"Oh really, have you taken a look behind you on the security wall? Have you not noticed the damage to the property that you are supposed to be protecting and making sure that this doesn't happen?" Randy asked. Peter turned around to see large spray painted pictures that would have taken some time to created, honestly. It was a blatant sign of his failure in my eyes.

"I was not aware of the new art work on the property." Peter said while facing the walls.

"I wouldn't call it art work. That is destruction of property that you were supposed to be securing. And it's not as though it would have taken minutes to do. Those pictures must have taken hours and the person or persons responsible were not stopped. What do you have to say for your security systems and company now Mr. McGuire." Randy asked. "Do you have this on tape?"

"No we do not." Peter said.

"Thankfully nothing inside the property was damaged, but this is still unacceptable. You are paid well for the services that you are supposed to be supplying, and you are failing miserably." I stated.

Peter looked me in the eye and sent his men off to look over the equipment and replace the cameras. Then turned back to me, "I have an appointment I need to be at and my men will take care of the system in short order." He started to turn to leave.

"Peter, don't you think that you should stay and oversee your men? You aren't giving me the professional service that I am paying for and your lack of professionalism is leaving a very bad taste in my mouth. I may just be looking for a new security company." I informed him.

He turned around and looked at me, "I doubt you will find a better security company that will work with you as well as we have." He said with a smile.

"You really believe that you are the best? With the inflated ego you seem to have it's a wonder your company is still in business." I sneered. "Your lucky no one has gotten hurt, because of that is the case you will find yourself in a whole lot of trouble there Peter."

"I doubt it really, I provide a service, and a good one at that." He simply said.

"Not from where I'm standing." I said.

"Good day to you Ms. Plum." Peter said as he stepped into his car and was off.

Randy and I watched as he left and looked at each other. He spoke first. "You need to convince Ranger to get a branch out here and soon." I nodded in agreement and we walked into the house.

XXXXXX

As the sun was setting that night I was looking forward to this day being over. Ranger was flying out tomorrow and I was going to see if he would be willing to open a branch of Rangeman out here in California. If I had to I would be more than happy to become a silent partner in his business, I was going to do whatever it took to make it happen, not that I thought he would fight me on it much, but you never know. Sitting out by the pool I was staring off into the sky when I felt someone sitting down next to me.

"Everything okay Pumpkin?" My dad asked.

"It will be tomorrow when Ranger's here. I miss him already. I'm getting spoiled being around him so much the last few weeks." I said with a smile.

"He's good for you, and I can tell your good for him too. It's good to see you happy again." He said.

"Yeah. It's good to be happy. Maybe things will start to settle down soon, but I won't count on it." I laughed.

**Well I hope that you liked this one. More will be coming later this week. Let me know what you think. **


	36. Chapter 36

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ "Everything okay Pumpkin?" My dad asked. _

_ "It will be tomorrow when Ranger's here. I miss him already. I'm getting spoiled being around him so much the last few weeks." I said with a smile. _

_ "He's good for you, and I can tell you're good for him too. It's good to see you happy again." He said. _

_ "Yeah. It's good to be happy. Maybe things will start to settle down soon, but I won't count on it." I laughed. _

XXXXXX

A few days later things had started to settle down with the arrival of Ranger, Bobby and Lester. To say that Lester was excited to be here was an understatement. The man exuded a child like energy that was contagious. Grandma and Lester were getting along like the best of buddies and he was more than happy to escort her to whatever function she wanted to attend as long as there were 'hot chicks' in attendance. His words not mine. Ranger had been absolutely furious with what had happened with Peter McGuire and had immediately suggested a branch of Rangeman out here ASAP, without my even having to ask. He was working in the office at my house trying to make arrangements for a new security system in the house first and foremost. We weren't going to worry about the exterior since that was currently covered by McGuire's company. Then we would work out all the details for the new branch on the West Coast. I could see the excitement in his eyes at the early expansion possibilities.

Today we were going to be heading out to Fontana Raceway for the driving challenge with Jay Leno. When we had made the arrangements I had requested that the entire thing be closed to the public and that we could invite many of the Southern CA military families, those that were helped by the foundation and those still currently enlisted. The event grew from just 10 laps around the track to an entire day of activities.

There was a kids' area with carnival rides and games, physical activities such as rock climbing and an obstacle course. The Foundation staff had done a wonderful job making sure there was something for everyone.

Since we deal with the military and this was tied to a NASCAR raceway we had some surprises in store for the families. The Army and National Guard cars and drivers were in attendance today for everyone to meet and explore their rigs and cars. Which meant that Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88) and Ryan Newman (39) were going to be in attendance. We even had a few friends of mine from the music industry joining us for entertainment this evening (Pink and Bruno Mars) and then there would be fireworks.

XXXXXX

I was standing in the garage near the car that I would be driving today and dressed in the drivers suit looking off in to the crowds of people in attendance when I was brought out of my thoughts for the day by Ranger snaking his arms around my waist and nuzzling my ear, "How do you do it?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked completely at a loss.

"How do you make everything you do so special? This was supposed to be a simple race challenge, yet you turned it into an event of a lifetime for most of the families that you have invited today." He said in awe.

"I've been blessed with so many things that when I have the opportunity to give back I do it. Today was nothing really. This was all the employees from the Foundations work, not mine." I replied.

"That's not what I meant." He paused thinking. "This was something you said as a challenge on the red carpet. A few laps would have been more than enough, but you put your heart into everything, and you never second guess yourself. You think of others before yourself and without hesitation, no matter how much works' involved. I know that you had a lot more to do with this than handing it off to the Foundation to handle. Not many people would do that. You, Babe, have a heart of gold. I'm in awe of everything that you do, and so thankful every day that you're in my life." At his word I sank into his embrace.

"I love you Ranger. Thank you." I said turning toward him. "This is who I am and I don't think I could be any other way. Sometimes it means I take on too much and other times it means that I don't have a moment to myself, but I wouldn't change it for the world. You have no idea what it means to me that you support it." I kissed him on the lips lightly before pulling back and smiling at him.

"I wouldn't want to change a thing about you, and I love to see you in action. I love you Stephanie. Never forget that." Ranger said kissing my nose. "Now we need to get out there so you can whip Leno's ass." At that I had to giggle.

Walking out to the pits, hand in hand with Ranger we were approached by the man himself. "So Steph, are you ready to eat my dust." Jay asked happily.

"I don't know about that Jay. You may be eating mine." We both laughed. I turned and introduced them and said, "Thanks for letting me expand on our little challenge. These families will remember this always."

Jay waived me off, "We are always looking for a way to give back; I was planning on taking part in your next USO visit as well. I've heard your tours tend to have a bit more fun than some of the others, so please let me know when you plan to go again. I'm more than ready to go."

"Next summer is the next trip actually. We'd love to have you. I have a tendency to get a bit more hands on when I'm there. Knowing some of the high ranking officials is definitely helpful and gives me more access than some, even in our line of work. I especially love getting behind some of those big machines. Hmmmm. The power under you is unbelievable." I said.

Both men were staring at me with wide eyes. I came back to reality, "Sorry, the last time I was over in there I got to drive some of the big tanks and other vehicles, there's nothing like it." I giggled.

"Well, let's see how you handle one of these babies." Jay smiled.

"You might be surprised what I can do with one of these Jay." I smiled back. I was quickly grabbed from behind and swung around as I screeched in excitement. I knew this was going to happen sooner or later. Once my feet hit the ground again I was wrapped up in the arms of Dale Earnhardt Jr.. I noticed Rangers' stiff posture immediately, but smiled back at him so he would relax.

"Steph, you're driving my car and I can't wait to see you put it through its paces." He smiled down at me. "It's been a while since I've seen you behind the wheel of one of these."

"Hey. Not that long, but definitely the first time in public. Jay thinks that he can take me." I laughed.

"No offense man, but if I were you I'd back out now. This woman has no fear on that track. She would beat the pants off half the NASCAR drivers if she ever turned professional." Dale explained.

Jay just looked shocked. I smacked Dale playfully and said, "Hey this is for fun, there will be no pants being removed today. Unless you're offering to do a strip tease for the ladies in the crowd? I think we have an extra tent over there somewhere. I wouldn't mind watching the show." I laughed.

"Uh uh, I don't think so. The last time I striped for anyone was quite a while ago, and it did not go over so well." He laughed.

"Yeah I remember." I said laughing with him and watching his face turn bright red.

Ranger looked at me in shock and Jay just smiled. "We'd had a lot of alcohol that night." Dale said as explanation.

"True, but the alcohol mainly came afterwards as a way to burn it from our brains, and apparently it didn't work." We both grimaced at each other. I turned to introduce Ranger, "Dale this is my boyfriend Ranger, he's ex-army and owns Rangeman Security on the East Coast."

They both shook hands, "Hey man, pleased to meet you. I've heard of the company, great reputation."

"Nice to meet you as well, and thanks. The guys have worked really hard to earn that reputation." Ranger stated.

"Alright, we should get this started. Is Ryan around? We can all go up and get things going." I asked. We looked around and when we found Ryan waived him over so the day could begin.

Making our way to the stage I grabbed Ranger's hand and we walked together. He seemed to relax a bit after the introduction, although I figured he was going to ask questions later about Dale. Oh boy was he in for a treat.

XXXXXX

"Welcome Everyone to the Fontana Raceway, Auto Club Speedway. I hope you enjoy your day with us today. I would like to thank all of our wonderful sponsors, NBC, NASCAR, Army, National Guard, Amp Energy, Universal Studios, my recording label and all of the local radio stations in attendance today. This event could not have taken place without them.

The John Mitchell Foundation has worked with many current and former military families over the years, some of which are in attendance today. Our goal is to make sure that everyone that has served in our military knows exactly how much you are appreciated. Today is just another opportunity to show you our appreciation. If you know of any individuals or families that may be in need of our services, please, stop at one of several booths around the Raceway and fill out a form. The information can be given anonymously or you can give your name as well. With your help we can reach many more veterans and families of those currently deployed that we may not know about at this time. You are truly our best resource for getting in contact with those that we can help the most.

So the challenge today is between myself and Jay Leno. This will be a 10 lap race. I hope he can keep up with me." I laughed looking at him and he smiled back. "Then once that has been completed we will be able to meet as many of you in person as possible. We will be having a concert later this evening and then fireworks as well, so please stick around for as long as you like today. I hope I have the opportunity to meet as many of you as possible.

A special thank you to Jay Leno, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Ryan Newman for participating today. Also this challenge will be aired this coming Friday on the Tonight Show. Alright everyone let the games begin."

The race was completed quickly and Jay was an unbelievably good sport about the fact that he got smoked by a girl. I think he was really taken aback by how unafraid I was of the speed. Well, most people would be, but I thrive on speed and the power of these machines.

We all got the opportunity to speak with many of the attendees and the gratitude that many of them showed was humbling. The entire event was a complete success. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Ranger was never far from my side and I watched as Bobby, Emma and Danny wandered around, looking more and more like a family. I could only hope that it would work out the way it appeared. Grandma was causing a stir in the crowds as usual, but I had to smile when security went running to keep her from doing anything in public that may not be appropriate for small children. At least they had been warned what to look for.

I was snuggled up against the man that I found myself falling more and more in love with, as each day passed, listening to the music, when I realized that I had never been this happy. No matter what seemed to come our way, we would work it out. Unfortunately, at that moment, I was pulled from my thoughts of bliss by the vibration of my phone and a feeling of dread washed over me as I put it to my ear.

"Hello?" I answered after looking at who the caller was.

"We have an issue at the offices. Can you get there?" Randy asked.

"Yeah. We'll leave now. What's up?" I asked.

"The Foundation was broken into and it appears that someone knew exactly where they needed to go and pull information from. You should bring Ranger." Randy explained.

"Alright we're heading out now." I said with a sign and closed my phone. So much for a wonderful ending to a wonderful day, I should have known it was too good to be true.

**Well I hope that you enjoyed the latest update for this story. More to come shortly I promise. Things are finally calming down as far as the activities and school for the kids. It really has been crazy lately. Please let me know what you think about this one. Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing this story. I look forward to hearing from you. **


	37. Chapter 37

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Margaret Fowler, FairTaxGirl, ShyGirl36, Ziandra2010, at8c, Wanda517, She'sGotHighHopes, Barb4psu for your continued reviews and great ideas.**

_Previously…_

_ "Hello?" I answered after looking at who the caller was._

_ "We have an issue at the offices. Can you get there?" Randy asked._

_ "Yeah. We'll leave now. What's up?" I asked. _

_ "The Foundation was broken into and it appears that someone knew exactly where they needed to go and pull information from. You should bring Ranger." Randy explained._

_ "Alright we're heading out now." I said with a sign and closed my phone. So much for a wonderful ending to a wonderful day, I should have known it was too good to be true. _

XXXXXX

The ride to the Foundation took what felt like forever. Neither one of us spoke the entire drive over. I was honestly surprised when I received the phone call from Randy. Who in the world would want to break into a non-profit organization? What were they after? I had heard over the last few days that there had been several break ins of large companies, but none of them were non-profits like this. Was it possible that they were related? I couldn't be sure at this point, but I'd be damned if I was going to let who ever did this get away with it. I just don't understand what kind of information they were looking for.

Ranger pulled the car into the parking lot and there were several police cars around. There was yellow tape across the back door and it was wide open. There were some police milling around talking to each other and some on their phones. I made eye contact with as many of them as possible and received a head nod in acknowledgement. Grabbing Rangers hand we walked past the crime scene tape and made our way down the hall. What I found was an absolute shock.

Randy was standing in the hallway speaking with the Chief of Police and I noticed that there were papers strew all over the floor. I looked to see which room it was and it was our accounting department. Turning into the room I noticed that file cabinets were open, but laying on their sides, with papers thrown around haphazardly. The desks in the room were tipped over as well and anything that could be moved was either destroyed or had been thrown in an attempt to break it.

I turned to Randy and the Police Chief and asked, "Was this the only room affected?" The sound of my voice was shaky even to me.

Randy only shook his head no and pointed to the file room that was down the hall just a bit. I gritted my teeth and walked down that direction to see what had happened in there as well. It was exactly the same thing. Paper everywhere, file cabinets on their sides open. I had to close my eyes to compose myself before I dealt with this. Ranger stepped up behind me and wrapped me in his arms.

"It'll be okay. We'll get them." He said in my ear.

I took a deep breath and replied angrily, "Oh you bet we'll get them. And their sorry asses won't know what hit them."

We turned back to Randy and the Police Chief and Ranger spoke up, "Have you contacted the security company to see if their camera have picked anything up? I see there are several around this area." Ranger asked.

Randy's face got red and his jaw clenched, "I called and they said their system was offline at the time, so no, they didn't get anything. The only reason we knew there was a break in was because the alarm system is also linked to the PD. The security company never even showed up."

"So not only do we have a security company problem, but we have no clue what is missing, or what they were after. It looks like it could take a while to get everything in order. This mess is unbelievable." I said shaking my head. Ranger squeezed my hand as a show of support and a way to try to calm the anger radiating through me.

"Is it just coincidence that the security system was down when they hit? I have a hard time believing that." I growled.

"It took my officers about 20 minutes to respond to the alarm and they were long gone by the time we arrived, the back door was left wide open, and no cars were in the parking lot. They had to have known what they were looking for, because nothing else was touched in the office. All other doors are still locked and seem untouched. Since none of the rooms are labeled as to what they are, and they have no windows looking in to them from inside the building, it only makes sense that this is some kind of inside job." He paused before continuing. "This could be someone from the Foundation, someone who has had many dealings with yourself or the Foundation, or someone from the security company. We will have to look into all of them. Can you tell me if you have had any changes in staff recently, or someone who left unhappy from the Foundation Stephanie?"

I looked at him and replied, "None that I am aware of. Most of the Foundation employees have been with me for many years. They are all paid very well for what they do, but I guess that anything is possible. I'll get you any information that you will need Chief."

"We'll run checks on all Foundation employees as well. Steph mentioned that there were some other break ins in the area recently as well. Were they all secured by the same company?" Ranger asked.

The Chief looked unhappy with this line of questioning. "Yes, they were. Although there was no where near the damage at those locations as there is here. I can't give you the details, but I think they are linked somehow. The only thing is, this appears to be a bit more personal than those. Destruction of property is usually tied into some form of revenge or anger."

"Yes, this does seem to be a bit personal, and believe me, in my opinion who ever did this will suffer a very personal pain when this is through." I paused and looked at the Chief. "Of course I mean no physical harm." I said with an evil smile which he returned.

"I understand completely Stephanie. And I won't put it past you to find out who did this before we do, just make sure that it's all legal ok?" The Chief replied.

"Oh it will be legal," I smiled, "and very, very public. If I find out that McGuire or any of his employees had anything to do with this he will wish he never started his company." I was seething inside and I needed to make sure that who ever did this would pay and pay dearly.

"Randy, let's call all the banks and make sure that they are all notified. If any of our account information is missing I want to make sure that no funds go missing. Tomorrow I also want to schedule a meeting with McGuire. I want to know why the system was not up and running, and I want to know why we were not informed that it would be down. I also want our lawyers on this now. I want to sue McGuire Securities since they so obviously didn't provide the services that we are paying for. My home being damaged is one thing, but this Foundation is helping so many that there is absolutely no excuse." I explained. "He will be sorry he crossed me."

"Chief can we get a copy of the police report faxed over to Steph's attorneys ASAP. Also would you be willing to meet with us when we approach McGuire tomorrow. It will be interesting to see what type of reaction he has when he is confronted." Ranger asked.

"I will make myself available. We have been trying to reach him over these other break ins as well and he has made it very difficult to get in touch with him. Would you mind if we had a few more officers present? We can hit him up with all of the information at once. I'm finding it more and more difficult to work with this company. We used to have a contract with them for support in research and investigations, but over the last year we have ended all of them. We've been looking for ways to bring in more Officers and Detectives because of the lack of support we get for the money the city has been paying them. Now it is mainly a case of finding the money to higher them." The Chief explained.

"We can definitely include more officers, but let's keep that information to ourselves for the time being. McGuire may avoid the meeting if he thinks it is anything more than a client meeting. From what I understand the guy seems way too arrogant for his own good." Ranger explained.

"Chief, I was also going to call you and warn you about a party my Grandma was planning on having." I saw him cringe. "I figured it would be better to let you know in advance." I laughed.

"Yeah, thanks. That woman is scarier than any action I have seen on the streets. What is she planning on doing?" He asked with a grimace on his face.

"It will be at my house after we head back to New York. I think she was planning on inviting some of her senior friends, but hopefully it won't get too crazy. Randy and Lester will be there to watch them, but I know that you will end up getting some calls." I laughed. "Lester is just as bad as Grandma in some ways, but so far this week he's been able to keep her out of trouble. It will probably be skinny dipping in the pool and lots of alcohol."

"So in other words, we may need to close our eyes when we approach the house." He laughed.

"Probably not an effective method of protection on the job, but then again it would save you from having those images burned into your brain." Ranger laughed.

"I'll probably have to have lots of bleach on hand for the officers on duty that night. Thanks for the warning." He laughed.

XXXXXX

It took a few hours before we were able to leave the Foundation, but we had a plan in place for tomorrow. McGuire had been left a message that he was to set up an appointment with me in the early afternoon tomorrow, no exceptions, or today rather since it was way after midnight. I was still so angry with everything that had happened. I felt like I'd be violated personally and I wanted revenge.

I could tell that Ranger was just as angry as I was and at the moment there wasn't much we could do about it. At least when we arrived back at the house all seemed to be quiet. Everyone could be told in the morning. We needed to get some sleep. Setting the alarm on the house system Ranger looked into my eyes.

"You know we will get this all taken care of as quickly as we can. Try not to worry too much." He said running a finger down my cheek, but I could still see the tension in his eyes.

I smiled at him and then pulled him up the stairs to the bedroom. "I know, but it doesn't make me any less angry. I swear once I get my hands on who ever did this they will wish they never thought of this plan, whatever it is." The more I thought about it the angrier I got. By the time we reached the bedroom I felt like I was vibrating with so much anger that I was going to explode, and not in a good way. I felt a squeeze of my hand and looked into the eyes of the man that I knew I would truly love forever.

The next thing I knew the bedroom door was closed and I was being pushed up against it, the cold of the wall, a complete contrast to the warmth radiating off of Ranger's body. His mouth descended on mine immediately.

After a few minutes he pulled back just enough so we could catch our breath and whispered, "Babe," while nibbling across my jaw line and down my neck, "let me make you forget just for tonight. It's just us, no one and nothing else matters." His arms snaked down to my thighs to lift my legs and wrap them around his waist before he carried me over to the bed.

My only reply was a whispered, "No one and nothing else."

**So what do you think? Who and what were they after? I hope you enjoyed this one. More to come next week. Thanks to everyone for the wonderful reviews. I really enjoyed reading what you think. **


	38. Chapter 38

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_After a few minutes he pulled back just enough so we could catch our breath and whispered, "Babe," while nibbling across my jaw line and down my neck, "let me make you forget just for tonight. It's just us, no one and nothing else matters." His arms snaked down to my thighs to lift my legs and wrap them around his waist before he carried me over to the bed. _

_My only reply was a whispered, "No one and nothing else."_

XXXXXX

Waking up surrounded by Ranger's arms was like waking up in heaven, and nothing could touch us. I wanted to stay right where I was forever, but we had a lot to do today. We needed to find out what was going on and make plans to secure not only my house, but also the Foundation. The failings of the security company were just too much to even consider continuing to count on them.

As the day progressed we had decided to add extra cameras to the house and the Foundation and run a sort of control room out of on of the extra rooms that were seldom used downstairs. The room could be secured so that when not in use it would be off limits to others, as well as away from prying eyes. McGuire was coming for a meeting this afternoon and he was no happy about it at all. Well tough, he didn't know what was going to happen when he got here and I was looking forward to see his reaction.

Ranger, Lester, Randy and I sat down to have a talk and before our meeting and I brought up the subject of Ranger opening a branch here in LA.

"I know it's something that you've mentioned before as a plan for the future, but what do you think about opening an office here in LA this year?" I asked.

Lester's eyes went wide, and then a smile grew across his face. "I love the idea, stars, beaches, and major parties. What would be more exciting than that?" Randy just laughed and smiled at him.

Ranger just looked at me seriously for a minute before responding. "Well, there are a few issues with that, but it's not impossible. We would need a location for offices, find the right staff takes time, and the start up costs would need to be in place. At the moment the company is doing well, but opening a new branch this soon could cause a drop in service to existing clients at the other branches. We'd be stretched pretty thin." He explained.

I thought for a minute how to bring it up; I didn't want him to think that I was trying to take over. "Well, since I was the one that brought up the subject, and I'm the one that really needs the service," I paused to look him in the eye, "how would you feel if I supplied all that for you, start up funds, offices, and connections to find you staff? I could be a silent partner. It's your company and you make the decisions."

I noticed his eyes open just a bit and then his mouth tilted up in a bit of a smile. "That's a lot to put up in order to be a silent partner." He said simply.

"Well, things aren't going well with McGuire, and his company is the only one large enough to really handle this town. You know what's going on as well as I do, and I don't want any more damage done to my property. I don't feel safe in my own home with that security system. I'll pay whatever it takes to feel safe and know that my organization is taken care of. I bet it wouldn't take too long to grow. With all of the connections because of the organization I bet it wouldn't take long to find you a staff that would do their jobs well and with a lot of pride as well."

His smile grew. "You've been thinking a lot of this haven't you?" He asked.

"Yes, for multiple reasons, most of them selfish." I smiled at him.

"I could put out some feelers to guys that I know from the base and see what they think. I'm sure the General would help as well. And don't forget about Frank as well." Randy said.

Ranger nodded his head in agreement and said, "Lets spend sometime looking into this and after this mess with McGuire is taken care of we can look to expand on the idea. I want to make sure that the house and Foundation are our first priority. I want everyone here safe." He explained. That's when the doorbell rang. It was show time.

XXXXXX

Peter McGuire was led into the den where everyone was currently sitting down. The meeting currently consisted of Ranger, Lester, Randy, Uncle Mike, my Dad and I. Nobody looked happy, but there was a certain gleam in Ranger's eye that I could tell he was looking forward to this. The rest of the guys were wearing blank faces. I was glad that we had convinced Bobby to take Emma and Danny out for the day. I knew he wanted to be there with me, but I didn't want Danny anywhere near this. The less she and Emma were involved in this the better.

Peter took a seat and stared at us for a minute before he spoke. "I have a team working on the break in at the Foundation. We should know something soon."

"Why was the system down?" I asked flatly.

"That was normally scheduled maintenance. You were sent an email to let you know it would be happening." He explained.

"No we weren't. No email was received. But beside that fact, why was there no one there to secure the building if the system was down?" asked Randy.

Peter gave him a hard look. "There was a team, but another call came up and they had to take care of it. Apparently they left forty five minutes before the break in took place. And you most certainly did get an email, that is protocol for any system being taken down."

"No one else could have handled that call? How many men did you have watching the building?" asked Ranger. "The building should have never been left unsecured, especially when your services are being well paid for. The system being down, and placing men on the outside of the building is in no way an appropriate service."

Peter snapped his head in Ranger's direction. "There was limited staff on duty last night. There was no way to avoid it. There was one team of two men on the building while the system was down. And what do you know of the security of that building or my services?"

Ranger smiled at him. "You know very well I own my own security company. And you know that it is never appropriate to lave any building you contract for unsecured, no matter what."

"You said there was an email sent that informed us, which we never received. I want a copy of the email sent, and I want to see exactly when it was sent." I told McGuire. "I also want you to look at the pictures in front of you of the damage caused to the Foundation. Tell me, do you see anything odd with them?"

He scanned the pictures and I saw his jaw tighten. I knew he was seeing the destruction that was left behind. I also knew that he wouldn't admit to it or let me know about the other properties that had been broken in to.

Without saying anything to us he opened his phone and called his office to request the copy of the email ASAP. As he spoke his face was getting redder and redder. Since we were only getting one side of the conversation it was a rather interesting sight to see. "What do you mean it wasn't?" A pause. "Who?" Another pause. "And why was I not informed?" His voice was getting louder and louder as his conversation continued. "I want all the information on this on my desk by the time I get back." And with that he closed his phone with a snap.

I looked at him with a smirk on my face. "Problem?" I asked.

He glared at me and then said, "Apparently the emails were not sent that day." That was it. No explanation was offered.

Uncle Mike spoke up next, "So we are just supposed to accept this? That's your explanation. Nothing was sent? You sir, are an excuse for a security company. You obviously don't know how to protect those that you secure, and you lack in any kind of customer service."

"This has not happened before, and my clients receive top service for their dollar. You don't know what you're talking about." He argued.

"Mr. McGuire you seem to forget who you are dealing with here." said my father. "You are looking at a room full of ex-military, veterans that have fought for and protected this country. We know how to secure individuals, as well as the masses, and could have done a better job protecting your clients with just the few of us here than you have within your employ."

McGuire blanched at that. "Your services have been less than average. Those pictures only show a portion of your incompetence as a security firm. It's amazing that you are in business still. But that won't last long. The number of businesses that have been paying for your services and have had problems in the last three months will more than likely find another company. I will be doing the same." I explained.

"No other company will be able to handle your business." He started to explain but was cut off.

"If you even think that you are going to continue with your business I suggest you start looking at your employees. I don't think that it was coincidence that the Foundation was broken into while there was no one to cover the building. If the email was not sent don't you think it strange that, if as you say, its protocol to notify of systems being offline that nothing was sent out for that night or location?" I kept going. "Those pictures show a personal grudge. I wonder is it against me, or you? We have already had conversations about having issues with the service provided. Don't you think it strange that my Foundation was hit?"

I saw the look in his eyes that, no he hadn't thought about it. "I think you have a bigger problem on your hands than you realize. But the safety of the people in this house, and the Foundation will not be put in jeopardy." I explained.

"You can't cancel your contract with my company, it's a binding agreement." McGuire argued as the doorbell rang again. "You'll end up in a lawsuit with my company if you attempt to end it." He gritted out.

"And you think we're afraid to go to court? After the lack of service that you have provided? No court in their mind would hold anyone to that contract. It's as good as void due to your end not being met." explained Uncle Mike.

I could see the fury in McGuire's eyes, "Are we the only ones having issues?" I asked sweetly.

"You are the only ones that are raising issues with the service." He replied.

A voice from behind us responded, "Now that's not true and you know it Pete. I have knowledge of several companies that have filled complaints and are planning on looking for new security services." The Chief of Police offered. "The city cancelled our contract with you for the exact same reason."

McGuire turned around to face the Chief and his face paled a bit. "What are you doing here? This is a private meeting." commented McGuire.

The chief smiled at him, "Yes I know." He walked over to McGuire and looked him straight in the eye, "I came to take you down to the station for questioning. Since you have been avoiding the PD's calls I figured I may as well just pick you up and bring you in."

McGuire stepped back shaking his head no. "My office was supposed to answer your questions. I've been busy with the rest of the business, and after I leave here I'm have another meeting to attend." He said flatly.

"I'm afraid you're going to miss your meeting. As soon as this is done you're coming with me." The chief explained.

"Well, actually I think we're done here now Chief. He's all yours." Ranger informed him. "Maybe you'll have better luck getting something from him."

McGuire glared at Ranger then turned to me, "Expect to hear from my attorneys if you attempt to cancel your contract."

"It'll be my pleasure." I said smiling at him from my seat. With that the Chief led McGuire out of the house by the arm.

I looked around the room at all the men and saw that there was a very tightly controlled rage in them, time to try and break the tension. "So, who's up for some swimming? A nice dunk in the cool water would do us all some good, and maybe some chocolate cake." I smiled at them.

"As long as you didn't make the cake, that sounds good to me." Randy said smiling at me. I narrowed my eyes at him and launched a pillow at him.

Everyone laughed at that and we all walked out to the back of the house. "Watch it. Maybe next time I bake a cake I won't tell you where it came from." I said with a smirk.

"Babe, that's just cruel." He said smiling at me. Then he bent over and whispered in my ear, "save a piece for later so that I can eat mine off of your body." Then he kissed me under the ear, and gently biting before picking me up and tossing me in the pool.

When I came up all the guys were laughing. Oh, he was so going to pay for that.

**So there was out next update. Sorry it took so long. There will be more regular updates now that some of my other stories are done. I have more time to focus on this one. So be expecting an update at least once a week, probably on Fridays. Happy New year everyone. Let me know what you think. Next up will be everyone heading back to NY for Broadway**.


	39. Chapter 39

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ Everyone laughed at that and we all walked out to the back of the house. "Watch it. Maybe next time I bake a cake I won't tell you where it came from." I said with a smirk. _

_ "Babe, that's just cruel." He said smiling at me. Then he bent over and whispered in my ear, "save a piece for later so that I can eat mine off of your body." Then he kissed me under the ear, and gently biting before picking me up and tossing me in the pool. _

_ When I came up all the guys were laughing. Oh, he was so going to pay for that._

XXXXXX

Well, thing weren't exactly settled when we had to leave to get back to New York, but Broadway, and my opening day waits for no one. When we boarded the plane I was happy to be leaving the problems of the break in behind, but at the same time concerned because Grandma had still insisted on having her party while I was away next week. It wasn't that I didn't trust her, well, her crazy parties sometimes could get out of hand, but it was more I had this feeling that something just wasn't right.

Daddy offered to stay behind and fly out with her when the party was over, but according to him, "There is no way in hell I'm staying in the house with her alone and her freaky friends. I'll stay with Mike and be just a phone call away. I don't need to suffer any permanent brain damage." I had laughed at that, but only because I knew that it could be a distinct possibility. My dad and Grandma may not always get along, but they did have a common bond, Me, and I knew that they would both do anything they could to make me happy, they always have.

Randy was staying at the house and would be around when the party took place, and would try to keep things somewhat tame. Yeah, right. I felt for the guy. He maybe ex-military, but there was no taming that crowd. At least he knew that he could call the Police Chief directly when they got out of hand. And they would get out of hand; it was just a question of when. He was also going to continue working with the Police Chief because of the security and break in problems, so he would be pretty busy.

Ranger had flown out Binkie so that he could start updating the new system that was being installed inside the house, and he would be there to help Randy as well. This helped to calm me somewhat, but with everything that had happened I was still a bit worried. Maybe it was just the stress of everything. It had been quite a while since I had been on Broadway, but Chicago was one of my favorite musicals, so when they had asked back at the beginning of the year I was all for it. Besides it was only for six weeks.

The plane trip went smoothly and we were in New York before you could blink. My apartment had been secured by a new Rangeman system while we were LA and Ranger came with us to walk us through the new system. Val and the girls were excited that they would get to spend time in the 'Big Apple', but I think that she was more excited to be seeing Joe Morelli again. He was planning on coming up this weekend to spend time with them and tour the city. Bobby was planning on visiting on his days off so he could spend time with Emma and Danny. I knew that before long he would be proposing to her, I just needed to convince him that it was the right move.

Ranger had to go back to work and would be back in time for opening night, but was swamped with work otherwise so I wouldn't see him for as while. Lester stayed with me, since it was easier for him to fit in among the crew and cast. His lighthearted approach to life made it easier for everyone to accept his presence without any questions. Not that they wouldn't have accepted it, he just seemed like more of a friend than a bodyguard necessarily. I thought that Ranger was being a bit over protective, I had lived and travelled in New York many times without the need for a bodyguard before, but then again, since Ranger couldn't be here with me, I had a built in date for functions and parties that I would attend while in town. Lester would love to meet some of the biggest stars in Hollywood.

XXXXXX

The rehearsals went smoothly over the two weeks, there were no issues in New York, and Grandma had everything set for her party. It just so happened that she chose to have her party on my opening night so that her group could watch the TV tabloid shows and sees me on TV. Randy and Binkie had both told me not to worry about anything and that they would make sure that Grandma would be just fine. My dad was regretting the decision to stay and watch out for her when he saw some of the people on the guest list. Not only was the majority of the attendants going to be crazy geriatric patients, but WWF wrestlers, female mud wrestlers, and even a few former centerfolds from 'Play Girl' magazine. I didn't care as long as the mess was cleaned up and no one was arrested.

Ranger had stayed away from rehearsals for the two weeks, because of work, and he wanted to see it live. Apparently he had never seen Chicago. Boy was he going to be surprised. The costumes were going to be a bit racier than the original show and the movie, but the dance routines were going to be, I guess suggestive would be a good way to explain it. Lester had sworn he wasn't going to say a thing to Ranger. He wanted to see his reaction up close and personal.

We had all arrived at the theatre together, Val and Joe (who had spent every second they could together this past two weeks), Bobby and Emma, Ranger and I as well as Lester. There was going to be security back stage so I didn't need a bodyguard, and the kids stayed at the penthouse with a sitter, due to the nature of the show. This was not going to be one they could see just yet, much to their disappointment. I went back to my dressing room to get ready while everyone went to relax before the show.

"Oh, man I can't wait to see the full run through of this. Seeing it in pieces out of order just doesn't have the full effect. And those dances? I can only say HOT! And, those skimpy costumes. Wow!" Lester said excitedly.

Ranger's face went blank. "What do you mean by 'HOT'?"

"Ranger, have you ever seen 'Chicago' before? The timeframe may be from the 20's, but that doesn't mean it won't be sexy and show skin." Joe Morelli explained with a grin.

"No I haven't, and I told Steph that I didn't want to see it until they were done, but I had no idea that it would be closed to kids under 17. What kind of show is this exactly?" Ranger asked.

Lester just smiled knowing the boss was not going to be happy when he saw what was going to happen. But, maybe once the night was over he would be able to relieve a bit of that tension that was soon to be running rampant through his body.

"Don't worry Ranger. Steph has done this before. At least some of the dancers from her tour are in the show with her, so she's familiar with them. It's not like she'll be groping some stranger." Val tried to comfort him.

"Groping? What are you talking about?" Ranger was getting more and more frustrated by the second.

Emma laughed, and Bobby joined her laughter. "It's nothing Ranger, just choreography. Just relax and enjoy the show. I guarantee that you will enjoy it. Steph lights up when she is on stage." She explained and Bobby nodded in agreement.

That was something he had known. He remembered the performances for the military that he had seen, as well as being her date for the Academy Awards. He knew she loved the spot light and that the spotlight loved her as well, but he loved the fact that she was still down to earth and could be just as happy snuggling on a lounger by the pool. There were so many facets to his Babe that he wondered if he would ever get to see them all. He was looking forward to spending the rest of his life learning more and more about her.

The house lights dimmed a short while later to announce the show would be starting shortly. "We better get in there. Hey Ranger, man, you might want to give Lester and I your extra weapons. We don't need you taking out anyone for touching your woman." Bobby laughed.

Ranger just glared at Bobby and everyone laughed as they made their way to their seats. Just to be on the safe side, Ranger was placed between both Lester and Bobby. Joe and Val were seated behind the others.

As the show progressed it was obvious Ranger was a bit uncomfortable, but from whether it was seeing his woman touched by other men repeatedly in ways that he wanted to be the only one to touch her, or from the massive hard on that was straining the fabric of his pant from the moment that she stepped onto the stage, they weren't sure. A few times it was noticeable that Lester and Bobby put their hands on Rangers' shoulders to keep him in place, and that was all before the intermission even took place.

Watching Steph drape herself over the piano, running her hands all over her body, men coming up to lift and caress her was an erotic experience. The outfits that she wore left almost nothing to the imagination. Oh yes, she was covered, for the most part. The outfits were skin tight, with lots of cleavage exposed, all of her mile long legs were on display for everyone to see, and her hair was up and made to look like a short bob cut exposing her neck. He knew every inch of her body and was not exactly thrilled to see it on display for everyone else to see. But he did have to admit it made his hard as steel to see her radiant on stage and not an ounce of hesitation in her movements.

A few times throughout the performance she was able to make eye contact with him and he was able to see the love that she had for him in her eyes and felt that she was moving just for him.

What was almost his undoing was the 'Cell Block Tango'. He knew that she could move with grace and confidence, but the moves she made, the dips, the snap of her head, the kick of her leg so it was straight above her head and held there, had him mesmerized. He needed to take her out so they could dance like that together. Having her spread eagle over him while laying on the floor, where the only thing between them was their clothing, well, maybe they would just do it in the privacy of their home. No one else needed to see them like that. What looked intimate on the stage would be nothing compared to how they would be together.

As soon as the show ended, and several standing ovations, the theatre was finally clearing out. Lester took Ranger backstage since he was familiar with where he needed to go. As they reached her dressing room and noticed the door was closed, Ranger leaned over to Lester, "You are not going in there right now."

Lester looked at his boss with a smile. "But I want to show Steph exactly how much I enjoyed the show."

Ranger stopped dead in his tracks and turned to Lester repeating, "You will not be going in there." Ranger locked eyes with Lester.

"We'll give you thirty minutes, and then we're all coming in." Lester said flatly, and then walked off smirking.

Ranger made his way to the door and knocked lightly, trying his best to keep a hold on his control. The door was opened a minute later by one of the dressing assistants. She nodded at him and walked back over to where Steph was getting out of her last costume of the night, and putting on a long blue silk robe with nothing underneath. She caught his gaze in the mirror and noticed that his eyes were completely black and his hands were fists at his side. She smiled at him, deep down inside knowing what was about to happen, a shiver went through her body.

"Thanks Marie. I can manage from here. Have a good night." The woman needed to get out of here before Rangers' control snapped, and Steph wanted to enjoy every second of it.

"You're welcome. You were wonderful tonight Steph. It's a pleasure working with you. Have a good night." Marie said as she stepped out of the door closing it behind her. Ranger made a step to the door and locked it before advancing on his Babe. Without a word he had her pinned against the wall and his mouth crashed down on hers the tie of her robe undone and the panels open allowing his hands to explore.

Everything else faded away, and somewhere in the faint distance she thought she heard his say 'Babe'.

**Haha. Maybe some smut, maybe not coming up. We'll see where the muse takes it for next week. I hope you enjoyed this installment. More to come next Friday. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. I love hearing your comments. If there is something you would like to see happen let me know and I will see if I can work it into the story. I'll take it as a challenge to see how creative I can get. Have a great weekend everyone. **


	40. Chapter 40

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ "You're welcome. You were wonderful tonight Steph. It's a pleasure working with you. Have a good night." Marie said as she stepped out of the door closing it behind her. Ranger made a step to the door and locked it before advancing on his Babe. Without a word he had her pinned against the wall and his mouth crashed down on hers the tie of her robe undone and the panels open allowing his hands to explore._

_ Everything else faded away, and somewhere in the faint distance she thought she heard his say 'Babe'._

XXXXXX

His hands roamed her body as his hard body had her pinned to the wall. He couldn't get enough of her. She had been driving him crazy throughout the entire performance and there was no holding him back now. The beast had to have her. She taunted him in the blue silk robe, standing there in nothing else and having it loosely tied, while she spoke to her dressing assistant, while he stood there. Now he had the robe open and pushed away from her body. There was nothing but his clothing keeping them from being skin to skin. That was a problem that could be taken care of very easily, but neither of them had the patience to wait.

Her hands were in his hair pulling him tight against her mouth, and then, when she released him she moved them down his torso. Running her hands under his jacket, she dragged her nails down his shirt slowly, making sure to run over his broad muscular chest and flicking his very hard nipples. There wasn't much room to maneuver, but she managed to get her hands to his belt buckle and opened it without hesitation. The next thing he knew his pants were around his ankles, his rock hard cock already sprung into action and he was able to drive into her with one hard move with no hesitation.

The sensation only drove them even more over the edge. His hands moved to her ass, while his upper body held her hard against the wall. He pulled her hips away from the wall and began to pound into her. There was nothing sweet about this coupling, this was feral, this was animalistic, and they each gave as good as they got. There was no dominant, they moved perfectly together, taking and giving to the other everything that was in them at that moment.

The moment her hips were tilted away from the wall, the shifting of the angle both were mere moments away from falling over that edge. Their speed quickened if that was even possible and they both went crashing over the edge together, screaming each others names, then slowly sliding to the floor in a sweaty heap.

"God, I'll never get enough of you." Ranger said while kissing her neck.

"I certainly hope not." Steph replied in a husky voice.

The next thing they knew there was a pounding at the door, just before it started to open. "Hey guys, you about ready to get out of here and celebrate?" Lester asked as he walked into the room.

Ranger quickly made to cover Steph with his body to block Lester's view. A leer crossed Lester's face as he made eye contact with the two on the floor. "I guess not, but you might want to get dressed before everyone else joins us." And just as the words came out of his mouth the room was flooded with people.

**Alright I know it's short, but I have another chapter that will be put up on Monday to make up for not posting last week. Things were crazy around here. Hope everyone has a good weekend Let me know what you think. I love to hear from you. **


	41. Chapter 41

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ "You're welcome. You were wonderful tonight Steph. It's a pleasure working with you. Have a good night." Marie said as she stepped out of the door closing it behind her. Ranger made a step to the door and locked it before advancing on his Babe. Without a word he had her pinned against the wall and his mouth crashed down on hers the tie of her robe undone and the panels open allowing his hands to explore._

_ Everything else faded away, and somewhere in the faint distance she thought she heard his say 'Babe'._

XXXXXX

(Randy's POV)

Back in LA Same Day

It was nights like these that could not go by quickly enough. I was here at the house and was responsible for Grandma and her gang of merry characters. There was always something that didn't go according to the plan, no matter how much we prepared. The cast of characters that were in attendance this evening were very eclectic, but it was always assured to be entertaining. Just hopefully I wouldn't be scared for life. The idea of little old ladies in thongs and see through shirts was just too much to stomach. I enjoyed looking at a nice body, just as much as the next guy, but the excess skin, wrinkles and sagging was just not my idea of a good evening, it was enough to make me shiver and cringe in fear. And that doesn't even take into account the naked old men that would be running around.

Grandma had wanted to have a party for a while now, and with everything that was happening in the last few months it hadn't been possible. I just wish it could have waited just a bit longer until the new security system was up and running one hundred percent.

"Hey Randy, I was able to get the cameras in the entryways and hallways up and running." Binkie informed me as he walked from the Communcations Room that we had set up.

"That's a relief actually. That way we can keep an eye on who is coming and going just in case. How about the bedrooms?" I asked.

"Not yet. The wiring took a bit longer than I anticipated, but I should have those up by the end of the weekend." He replied.

"So, tell me what this party should be like." He asked as the guests were coming in droves.

"Well, would you believe that this mixed up group is pretty wild? We have had the police here every time Grandma has thrown a party. Not because of damage, but because they are loud and they tend to go streaking through the neighborhood. The amount of alcohol they consume would make a normal persons liver shrivel up, and then there will probably be sex anywhere and everywhere. No beds required with this group. It's almost like they try to out do each other." I explained shaking my head.

Binkie had a horrified look on his face. "These little old ladies do that? I don't think I've done it in public view for all the world to see, and I've done some pretty creative things."

I laughed. "Well, get ready." I said pointing to the dinning room table where Grandma was lying down allowing people to take body shots off of her. "It's starting off with a bang already." I saw him grimace. "And it can only go downhill from here." I laughed again.

"Oh man. What did I do to deserve this?" He asked.

"Well, the good news is they may get crazy but they don't destroy things, otherwise Steph wouldn't allow them to have their parties. So from that stand point it's pretty tame. You just need to bleach your brain afterwards. Once I tried to think of them as hot models, but that didn't work too well. One of them got their hands on me while I was daydreaming and got me down to the floor with her tongue in my mouth before I came to." I shivered remembering that. One time was all it took to prevent me from ever daydreaming in any of Grandma's friends presence.

I looked at Binkie, he was laughing. "Thanks for the warning. I don't think I could even imagine them as anything else. My grandma is nothing like these ladies. Actually I was planning on seeing her while I'm out here. When I told her I was coming out here she was thrilled, especially when I told her where I would be."

I shrugged my shoulders watching the fun, or in our case nightmare, unfold in front of us. It didn't take long before the music was pumping and the patio and pool were put to use with skinny dippers and naked dancers. I had seen Frank come in, take a look around and head for the door just as quickly as he came. I couldn't blame the man. If I could leave I would too.

"Randy!" Grandma shouted at me from the pool.

"What can I do for you Grandma?" I asked, kneeling down to speak with her.

"Well, see, my friend Mable over there, she wanted to know if you could help with a little problem." She commented.

"And what exactly would that be Grandma?" I asked wearily.

"Well, she is feeling kind of left out over there. And," I quickly cut her off.

"Grandma, you know I'm working and I have no interest in participating in any of your games or 'fun'." I replied quickly. "I have to go back and check the inside."

I stood up quickly and turned to go, but was stopped by her 'friend' Mable.

"Honey, you look like you could go all night. I can keep you busy." She said as she ran a hand down my chest. Wow she was forward, and obviously had some alcohol in her system. I tried to walk around her but she grabbed onto my shirt and tried to pull me in for a kiss. This woman was unbelievably strong for how small she was.

Before she could connect our lips, I hear "Grandma Mable? What are you doing here? And, where are your clothes?" Binkie shrieked.

"Oh, hey there grandbaby. I was talking to Edna the other day and she invited me to the party. I didn't realize you would be here tonight. I knew this was where you were going to be staying." She released me and walked over to Binkie and hugged him in a bear hug.

A look of horror crossed Binkie as his naked, gray haired; 5'3 granny hugged him in front of the entire party.

"I missed you so much Brian." She paused, took a deep breath and then called out, "Hey everyone, this is my grandbaby Brian that I've been telling you about." Binkie's face became red immediately and he looked like he wanted to hide.

The crowd called back "Hey Brian." And I also heard a few, Welcome to LA".

I smiled at him and made my quick exit from the pool area to get away from the woman. I really didn't want to be anywhere near her. That was too close to call if you ask me.

The party went on through the night, and as expected the Police chief showed up, 'just to check things' he said. He only stayed until the party began to breaking up. Once everyone had left the patio area we cleaned up that area and then locked it up and moved through the house following the few stragglers that remained. I saw that Grandma was heading for the staircase, probably to get something to show her last few guests, but all of a sudden there was a commotion at the staircase and then there was a black blur that ran towards the front door.

I was about to go after the blur, but I heard a crash and then a cry of pain coming from the staircase. Quickly making my way toward the staircase coming in to view was a body laying at the bottom of the stairs. Binkie and I made it at the same time, and were kneeling next to the body that wasn't moving.

Quickly pulling out my cell phone and dialing 911.

"911, what's your emergency?" the operator answered.

"I need an ambulance, Edna Mazur, Stephanie Plum's Grandmother has fallen down the stairs and is unconscious."

**Okay, so a bad spot to end it I know, but I will get this updated soon so you won't be sitting there for too long. I promise. I hope you liked this one. Let me know what you think. Thanks to those faithful reviews you drive me to write more. **


	42. Chapter 42

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously… _

_ "God, I'll never get enough of you." Ranger said while kissing her neck._

_ "I certainly hope not." Steph replied in a husky voice._

_ The next thing they knew there was a pounding at the door, just before it started to open. "Hey guys, you about ready to get out of here and celebrate?" Lester asked as he walked into the room._

_ Ranger quickly made to cover Steph with his body to block Lester's view. A leer crossed Lester's face as he made eye contact with the two on the floor. "I guess not, but you might want to get dressed before everyone else joins us." And just as the words came out of his mouth the room was flooded with people. _

XXXXXX

Lester stood there and leered at us, but you could clearly see that he wanted to laugh at the entire situation. I smirked at him and then heard the others entering the room.

"Steph, oh my god, that was fabulous." I heard Emma. I saw her step further into the room and look around. "Where are you?" And just then she turned around to see us still on the floor, Rangers pants around his ankles, my robe completely open, but my body mainly covered by his. Hopefully his jacket was long enough to cover that luscious ass of his. She smiled widely at us. "Having fun?" she asked.

I smiled at her and then saw Bobby stop in his tracks next to her before turning to look at what she was seeing. "I knew he had it bad. You should have seen us trying to hold him in his seat." Bobby said with a smirk on his face. He started to reach towards me to help me up when Val and Joe came in the room.

A startled Val screeched, "Stephanie, close you robe, how can you stand around naked with people in your dressing room for everyone to see? Where is your head?" Val yelled drawing Joe's attention to what was going on.

"Well Val, as you can see I'm not standing around naked, I happen to be on the floor." I heard Lester laughing. I grabbed Bobby's hand and Lester stood with his back to me to try to block at least some for me from view while I closed my robe. As soon as I was up, Ranger was up buckling his pants again, then pulling my back flush against his front. Apparently he was ready to go at it again already. "If Lester hadn't been Mr. Impatient you wouldn't have walked in here to see this."

"But on the floor Stephanie. Really you couldn't wait?" Val replied rolling her eyes, face red as a beet. Joe laughed next to her.

Joe smiled wickedly, "Val, if anyone was responsible for their lack of control it was probably Ranger. The moves that she was doing on that stage had me adjusting myself in my seat several times, I can only imagine how Ranger feels seeing her like that up on stage while everyone is watching." Joe laughed at the grunt that came from Ranger behind me. "Really Steph, I had no idea you, or anyone for that matter, could move like that." Joe said with glassy eyes and a bit of drool coming out of the corner of his mouth.

"Well, maybe I should get Val to spend some time with me on the stripper pole so that it can spice things up for you two a bit." I said with a smile. Joe's eyes widened as another wicked smile crept across his face, while Val squeaked in response. The room was filled with laughter at that point.

"Oh come on Val, its fun, plus its great exercise." Emma said while laughing. "And Steph's right, it does add to the fun in the bedroom." Emma wagged her eyebrows at Bobby to which he smiled.

Bobby then stepped up, pulled me from Ranger's arms and gave me a big hug while whispering in my ear, "You were wonderful tonight. We had to restrain Ranger in his seat a few times. It may have been better that he didn't come to see any of the rehearsals, or he would have been a bit hard for you to deal with before hand." We laughed and I kissed his cheek. Before stepping back he asked, "Is he treating you right?"

I looked into his eyes and said, "Perfectly." stepping back into Ranger's embrace. "Alright everyone out so I can get changed and we can go out for drinks before bed, I have two performances tomorrow, and I need my beauty sleep."

Everyone laughed at that and started moving out of the room, with Lester closing the door behind him. Ranger squeezed me tighter around my waist and said, "Don't plan on getting too much sleep tonight."

I spun around and rubbed myself against him. "And you think what? That I'm going to tell them to get out so we can have drinks and then I can screw your brains out? I don't think so, that's need to know information." His eyes widened and dilated to black with desire before his mouth crashed down on mine.

A few minutes later we were drawn out of our lust induced stupor by a pounding on the door, "Come on guys. Peel yourselves off each other before I come in there and do it for you. We want to go out and celebrate. Move it." came Lester's voice thru the door.

We pulled apart reluctantly and rested our foreheads together. "I'm going to kill him." Ranger growled.

"At least he didn't just walk in this time. He's learning. At least you know he's trainable." I laughed and then walked over to put on my clothes.

After dressing I pulled him out the door and to the group waiting for us so we could go out and celebrate the shows success this evening. Arriving at the bar of choice for the evening we were greeted by a round of applause and a bottle of the best champagne available.

"To Stephanie being back on top on Broadway and a life long career in the spotlight. Congrats Steph, you did it again. We're all very proud of you." Emma toasted.

XXXXXX

We had spent a few hours in the bar just talking, laughing and in general making my sister blush with our racy comments. It was a lot of fun to tease her, but I knew that Joe would get to have some fun with her tonight. God knows she needs it. She may live out in California like me, but that burg' upbringing was still too engrained in her. She needed to loosen up a bit and I had every intention of getting her on the stripped pole like we had teased.

Walking into my bedroom with Ranger right on my heels I knew we weren't going to get much sleep. I needed him badly; our earlier encounter was nowhere near enough for me. He was lucky that I didn't pull him into the women's restroom in the bar and have my way with him there.

As we slowly undressed each other he asked, "So a stripper pole, huh? How come you don't have one in your bedroom?"

As I kissed down his neck to his shoulder I replied, "Never had the need for one before. Would you like one permanently installed in the bedroom?" I asked him.

He growled and then flung me on the bed and followed me down after divesting the rest of his clothes, "As long as I'm the only one to see what you do with it I'm game." He replied before he took command of my mouth while our hands roamed each other.

When he released my mouth for a moment I replied, "Good, then I guess I will have it installed when we get back to LA." And that was the end of the conversation as he worked over every inch of my body. It was as if he was trying to brand every inch of skin as his own. And boy was I in heaven.

XXXXXX

A few hours later in the early hours of the morning we had just gone to sleep and my cell phone rang. I was surprised that someone would call at this time, but knew that if they were calling it must be important. Looking at the caller ID I saw that it was my dad.

Sleepily I answered, "Daddy, is everything ok?" I waited for a reply and sucked in my breath when he started to explain.

"No pumpkin, it's your grandma. She was rushed to the hospital after a fall down the stairs."

**Alright evil spot to end it, but I have to admit this is the perfect cliffie if there ever was one. Let me know how you liked this one. The more reviews you leave the sooner I will post the next update, like maybe Monday.**

**The muse has been very good to me this week. I have even been able to get some other storylines together. Hehe. Yes, I know, I'm becoming a review slut. But I love hearing what you think of my stories. Have a great weekend. **


	43. Chapter 43

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ A few hours later in the early hours of the morning we had just gone to sleep and my cell phone rang. I was surprised that someone would call at this time, but knew that if they were calling it must be important. Looking at the caller ID I saw that it was my dad._

_ Sleepily I answered, "Daddy, is everything ok?" I waited for a reply and sucked in my breath when he started to explain._

_ "No pumpkin, it's your grandma. She was rushed to the hospital after a fall down the stairs."_

XXXXXX

(Back in LA)

The few people that were leaving the house were quickly pushed aside and out of the way while the ambulance attendants made their way to where Grandma was laying unconscious. Fortunately I was able to check her out to make sure that she had no broken bones that I could see, which was good. Now if she would only wake up my heart could start beating like normal again. I needed a distraction.

"Binkie, go check the video feed from all the entrances. I want to know who did this and where they were. No one was supposed to be upstairs." Randy commanded.

Binkie stood up quickly and was on the move. "On it." He threw over his shoulder.

As the EMT's checked out grandma I called Frank to let him know what had happened.

"Frank, I need you to meet us at the hospital. Grandma had a fall and is being taken in. She's still unconscious."

"No problem. I'll be there in a few minutes. What happened?" I heard the rustling of fabric in the background.

"Someone was coming downstairs like a bat out of hell while she was going up and knocked her down. I have Binkie looking for this person on the security cameras. He was dressed all in black and even had his face covered. We need to find out how he got in and what he was doing here. But I need to get grandma taken care of before I can do too much about it. Binkie is handling it right now." I answered.

"Okay then. I'll have Mike come over and help Binkie and I'll meet you at the hospital. Let's wait to call Steph until we have an idea of what is going on. She's probably in bed right now and I know she is supposed to have two performances tomorrow, or today I guess." Frank responded.

"I agree. I'll see you at the hospital." And we ended the call. I turned and saw that the EMT's had grandma loaded up and were about to wheel her out. "I'm riding along with you."

"Sir, there won't be any room in the back while we work on her. You'll need to take your own vehicle." The young man answered.

I glared at him. "Do you know who this is?" I asked and saw a shake of his head no. "This is Stephanie Plum's grandmother and she will not be in that vehicle without someone from this house with her. Do I make myself clear? The woman was attacked in her own home. Do you think that is cause for concern?"

His eyes widened and then he looked down at his patient. "Alright sir. Just make sure that you stay out of our way." I nodded my understanding.

Binkie came walking into the foyer as we were leaving. "I'm still looking but haven't found much of anything yet."

I nodded, "Mike is on his way over here to help you. He can talk to the Chief if he shows up as well. I'm riding along and will meet Frank at the house. Don't call Steph or Ranger. I'll take care of that." He nodded and I walked to the ambulance thinking, 'come on grandma you have to be okay.'"

XXXXXX

A short while later at the hospital Frank and I sat in the waiting room to hear news and had gotten nothing so far. Talking to Binkie and Mike they had seen a man in black running thru the front door on his way out, but his face was covered. They weren't able to find out how he got in or where in the house he had been exactly. It was not making out wait any less stressful.

The doctor finally came walking down the hallway and stopped in front of us, "Mr. Plum, Randy?" Frank and I nodded. "Ms. Mazur should be just fine. All x-rays show that nothing is broken, although she will have some bruises from the fall, but that is minimal considering what could have happened at her age. She has a concussion and it took her quite a while to regain consciousness, but she is now and asking for Randy. We want to keep her here over night for observation, but she will be released later this morning. If you will follow me I'll take you both to her."

Frank and I shock his hand and thanked him for his help. Grandma was laying in a hospital bed in one of those gowns we all love so much and the first thing we heard was, "get me out of this ugly thing. I have a reputation to protect." Frank and I snickered at the same time.

"Grandma, no one is going to see you in that." I replied.

"Edna, we'll be able to take you home in a while, just lay back and relax." Frank explained. "It's not the end of the world."

"Easy for you to say, it's not your ass hanging in the wind. What a crummy end to a wonderful party." Grandma huffed.

"Grandma, did this person say anything to you when you saw him? Did you recognize his voice?" I asked.

She looked at me, "I really don't remember what happened. I know I went to walk up the stairs and then the next thing I'm awake here in the hospital with a pounding headache."

"We'll get you something fort he headache Ms. Mazur. I'll be right back." the doctor said.

Grandma relaxed back into the bed. "Frank you need to make sure that Steph stays in New York. She doesn't need to worry about me." She said looking straight at Frank.

"I will, but you know she isn't going to be happy about this. And really neither will Ranger. Be prepared for some changes to be made around the house Edna." Frank said.

"I wouldn't be surprised if we had a whole contingency of Rangemen here in the next day or two." I commented.

"And I think they will be pretty permanent." Frank offered. "I better go call her now." He took a deep breath before heading out the door. I knew that he was not looking forward to making this call.

XXXXXX

Pulling the phone out of my pocket as I walked out of the ER doors I took a few deep breaths trying to get ready for the barrage of questions I knew were going to be coming my way. Dialing and the phone rang the first thing I heard was "Daddy, is everything okay?" in a sleepy voice. I really hated having to wake her up.

"No Pumpkin, it's your grandma. She was rushed to the hospital after a fall down the stairs." I tried to explain, but before I got any further she yelled thru the phone.

"What do you mean she was taken to the hospital? What happened?" I could hear rustling on the other end and a faint 'Babe?'.

"She's going to be okay pumpkin, but she was pushed down the stairs by someone who broke in during her party. Binkie and Uncle Mike are trying to see if they can figure out who and how this person got in and try to figure out what they were doing." I quickly explained.

"Someone broke in during her party?" She asked

"Yes, and when he made his attempt to flee he knocked your grandmother down the stairs. Nothing is broken, but she has some bruises and a concussion. She was brought to the hospital in an ambulance." I continued.

"But she is going to be ok?" She asked letting out a breath. "And no one else was hurt?"

"Yes, she will be fine, and no, no one else was hurt. We will find this person Pumpkin." I offered.

"I know, but that doesn't make me feel any better about grandma getting hurt." She took a deep breath. "I'll fly out tomorrow. I need to see for myself that she's ok."

"No Steph, there's no need for that. You won't be able to do anything and you have a job to do. Let us take care of this." I pleaded. I knew that this would not be the last conversation about this.

"Daddy, I have to see her. I have Tuesday off, so I'll fly out Monday night after the show and return in time to do the Wednesday shows. IS there anything that you need right now? Is Randy there with her?" She asked.

"Alright, yes, Randy is in the room with her. We won't be leaving her alone Steph. I'm sorry I had to tell you this." I said sadly.

"I'd rather know now Daddy. Give me a call when you get back from the hospital so I can talk to grandma. And Daddy," she paused, "we are going to make this person pay for this."

"You know it Pumpkin. Go back to sleep. We'll talk more later. I love you." I said.

"Love you too Daddy. Tell Grandma I love her too. And thanks." She said before hanging up.

If I knew my daughter she was not going to let this go, no matter how busy she is, she will make sure that everyone has what they need. I just hope the house will be able to withstand the storm that is brewing, not only with her, but Ranger as well. Look out California, here comes Rangeman.

**So you now know what happened to Grandma Mazur. See no major harm done, but a great job pissing Steph and Ranger off wouldn't you think? I hope you enjoyed this one. More to come later this week. **


	44. Chapter 44

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ "I'd rather know now Daddy. Give me a call when you get back from the hospital so I can talk to grandma. And Daddy," she paused, "we are going to make this person pay for this." _

_ "You know it Pumpkin. Go back to sleep. We'll talk more later. I love you." I said. _

_ "Love you too Daddy. Tell Grandma I love her too. And thanks." She said before hanging up. _

_ If I knew my daughter she was not going to let this go, no matter how busy she is, she will make sure that everyone has what they need. I just hope the house will be able to withstand the storm that is brewing, not only with her, but Ranger as well. Look out California, here comes Rangeman._

XXXXXX

As soon as she hung up the phone I pulled her into my arms. I knew that was a hard conversation for her to have, and I only got half of it, but I was going to take care of my woman. Her body was shaking with anger and fear and at the moment all I could do was hold her and share my strength with her. I would do anything for this woman; she had become my world from the moment that I met her. No one was going to hurt her or anyone in her family if I could help it.

After a few minutes she had calmed down enough to tell me what had happened. "I need to fly out there tomorrow night and see her for myself." She tried to explain.

"I know Babe, and I'll be right there with you. In the morning I'll make a few calls and we'll get a whole crew out there." I said kissing her forehead.

She looked up at me with those gorgeous blue eyes of hers and I saw all of her love in them. She lifted up her head so she could kiss me lightly on the lips and then moved a hand to behind my head and pull me closer to her. I let her have all the control. I knew that she needed a release and right now I was it. Steph flipped us over so that she was straddling my hips, never breaking the kiss, and I was already hard as a rock. What this woman could do to me with a simple touch, god I would never get enough of her.

She simply rubbed her body against mine twice before she impaled herself on my shaft and began to ride me until we were both rocketed off to ecstasy. He breast rubbed against my chest and her hands had moved to hold me arms over my head. The stretch it took her to hold me in position charged the angle so that her with every move her g-spot was touched and she was building to her climax faster and faster. My hips shot up off the bed to meet her and the pounding of flesh only turned me on even more. Our mouths swallowed all sounds that were made, but she sped up just before we both started to go over, pulling her mouth away from mine and screaming 'God I Love You' and we both went over together. She collapsed on my chest and we were panting heavily, my arms tight around her holding her to me and making sure that we were still joined. This is where she belonged, with me, forever.

We both fell asleep a few minutes later and slept soundly until the sun came shinning through the window. We woke up in exactly the same position, still joined. I watched her sleep on me and when I couldn't take it any more I started to lightly pump my hips. The only response I received was a light, mmmm, noise and her arms tightening around me. So I continued my slow movements, not wanting to hurt her, I knew she had to be sore, but she didn't seem to protest. After a few minutes, her eyes began to flutter and her body began to move in time with mine. The minute she looked into my eyes I rolled us over and said, 'I love you more than anything' crashed my lips to hers and we were going over the edge together. What a way to wake up.

After snuggling together, we decided to take separate showers so that we could make a few phone calls. Mine were to my other branches letting them know that I was pulling three men from each location, Atlanta, Miami, Boston and Trenton, one of the three being a member of each core team from that office. All men were to be in New York tonight and they would be out in CA for an undetermined amount of time.

After our respective showers we sat down to have breakfast. "Babe, there will be 12 men flying out with us tonight, all of whom I trust, all of whom will be setting up the new office."

She looked at me dumbfounded for a second before she smiled brightly at me. "I'll call and have the bedroom set up for them at the house. They will have full access to the property. We can make any necessary changes to the grounds that you will need and then we can start to look for an office building in the fall for your company."

"But, once we have an office building I want there to remain a satellite office at the house. Randy and a few others can run it, but this way you and your family are always protected." I explained.

"That's fine." She said nodding her head in agreement. "Whatever funds you need will be available to you." I went to shake my head, to tell her no, but she continued. "This is moving up your timeframe considerably, and because of something that has to do with me. I won't let you put your company at risk because of me." She said firmly. "But we are going to grow your business exponentially as well."

I looked her in the eye and saw that she was being completely honest. "We'll make sure that we work out some kind of payment plan." I said with finality.

"No, you won't. What's mine is yours. Just so you know, I already started adding you to some of my accounts." She said with a slight smile. I just glared at her. "Hey I know that you have done the same exact thing, so don't give me that look." She was absolutely right, I had, not that she needed the money, but I knew that she would put it to good use if anything happened to me. I just nodded in agreement.

"I want whoever did this to pay, and this is the perfect opportunity to make a name in California for Rangeman. You are going to go in, as a company with guns blazing, with or without my money." She smiled at me. "California isn't going to know what hit it." She said with a laugh.

It was true, we were going to find out who was doing this and make an example of what happened when you messed with what was ours. There was going to be hell to pay.

We talked a bit more about how things were going to go when we arrived in California and the return trip to New York. We had a good working outline of a plan by the time we needed to get to the theatre for her show this evening. After seeing opening night, I was floored that this one was even better, but at least I knew what to expect. He moves were much crisper, and I could see that she was trying to get out her anger even more with every step.

As I looked around the crowd as the performance was coming to a close I couldn't help but notice all of the men and looks of pure lust and desire towards my woman. I wanted to string them all up by their balls, but I knew that wouldn't happen. I'd have to take out my frustrations on the plane with her like we did last night. My dick twitched at that very thought.

Before I knew it we were all boarding the plane, and in the air. All twelve men were in attendance, the core team members being Bones from Miami, Hawk from Atlanta, Jake from Boston and Lester from Trenton. Valerie and her girls were here, so they could stay behind and take care of Grandma Mazur, as well as Emma, Danny and Bobby. I was a bit worried that we wouldn't have enough men to handle everything that was going to happen, but this was all we could get one short notice without leaving the other offices too short handed. Steph had handled all of the cars and other arrangements for once we arrived, and I knew that Mike and Randy were meeting us at the airport.

Speaking with Mike and Binkie I had found out that they entire house system was up and running and that they had done a complete search of the property, all rooms including, the bedrooms and had found some hidden cameras, mainly in Steph's bedroom, but they had removed them all. They were in the process of tracing them. Mike also had used his contacts to find workers for us in the area, none of which having any connection with McGuire Security, but all of which would be ex-military or law enforcement.

The first order of business when we arrived would be to double check our new system and then removing all equipment from the property that was from McGuire Security. The Foundation would be our next location to work on, while we were searching for this lowlife that would dare to go after my woman and harm her grandmother.

As soon as the plane came to a stop, Steph and I walked down the stairs and were greeted by Mike and Randy. After the hugs and kisses were done, the introductions made, Steph said, "Alright tell me what we know so far. I want this guy's ass, and I want it bad. He is going to pay, and anyone that had anything to do with this we are going to make an example of. No one messes with me or my family." Randy and Mike smiled an evil smile, nodded their heads and lead us to a vehicle where we all climbed in and they began to relate their information.

**Alright. Here is the latest update. Let me know what you think. Sorry for the delay. My kids are home this week because of furlough days in the school system. This should be an interesting week, but they are getting put to work cleaning and pulling weeds. Hehe. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story. I love to hear from you and your thoughts of where this one is going. Tell me more. **


	45. Chapter 45

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_The first order of business when we arrived would be to double check our new system and then removing all equipment from the property that was from McGuire Security. The Foundation would be our next location to work on, while we were searching for this lowlife that would dare to go after my woman and harm her grandmother. _

_ As soon as the plane came to a stop, Steph and I walked down the stairs and were greeted by Mike and Randy. After the hugs and kisses were done, the introductions made, Steph said, "Alright tell me what we know so far. I want this guy's ass, and I want it bad. He is going to pay, and anyone that had anything to do with this we are going to make an example of. No one messes with me or my family." Randy and Mike smiled an evil smile, nodded their heads and lead us to a vehicle where we all climbed in and they began to relate their information._

XXXXXX

The car ride to the house seemed too short to get all of the information that we needed, but at least we had some idea of what was going on. The cameras at the entrance had shown a man in all black, including a black baseball hat running out the door, and his face was obscured so we were unable to get his true identity. However there were a few things that had come to light, he had dark brown long hair pulled back in a pony tail hanging out under the cap, along with a tattoo of some kind on the back of his neck, mostly blocked by the shirt, but at least we knew he had some permanent marks on his body, it would help to eliminate others. There was nothing that showed his entrance to the party, so that meant his entrance was somewhere not covered by our systems, access had to be by a window somewhere, which meant they were covered by McGuire Security.

Arriving at the house Grandma Mazur was waiting on the porch for us holding a cane, and standing next to Frank holding her other arm in support. As soon as we came to a stop Steph was out of the car and checking over her grandmother.

"I'm fine baby granddaughter. Nothing but a few bruises, you can't keep this old woman down." Grandma Mazur explained. She turned her attention to the all of the men exiting the different vehicles. "Oh my, look at all of these hot beef cakes. Mmmmm. Are they all staying here Steph?" She asked with a wicked grin.

Steph laughed and replied, "Yes grandma, but they are here to work, so be on your best behavior. You have Lester to play with now."

At the sound of his name, Lester walked over to them, did a flamboyant bow, with arm waving in the air and replied, "At your service grandma. We are going to have lots of fun together." After he stood up he winked at her, kissed her hand and continued, "Some of these guys know how to live, but others we'll need to break in."

She giggled in reply, and said, "I can't wait."

Frank and Stephanie were off to the side talking quietly and then I noticed the Valerie made her way over to her grandma, but didn't quite make the fuss that Steph and Lester had, but she was concerned for her just the same. Everyone was going to be staying at the house in the mean time, Valerie had agreed to keep the girls here where there was proper security, and they could watch over grandma since Steph and I had to go back to New York. I would be flying back and forth when needed and Morelli had offered to come out and help since he had taken the next two weeks off so he could spend it with Val in New York. He had headed back to Trenton to finish his work schedule for this week and would be flying out with me on Sunday.

The men were shown to their rooms to get settled and bunk for the night, tomorrow would be a long day. Some were sharing rooms, and Mike had offered to have any that wanted to stay at his home. So far none had taken him up on that offer, but as we increased our numbers it would eventually be needed. We all made our way to bed for the night; a few were on night guard just as a precaution since our full system was not up yet.

XXXXXX

The next morning came much too quickly, but started off with a bang, my men were working in two teams, on installing the new system and the other ripping any presence of McGuire Security from the property. We had gotten a call from McGuire after three hours of his system being down asking what was going on, and he was informed that his services were no longer required and to consider it a termination of our contract.

"I really don't care what kind of contract I have with you! You have been told over and over again about your lack of service that I am paying for. You have done nothing to improve it that I can see, and this time my home was violated. No one even showed up when the police were here and my grandmother was hurt. The contract was terminated by those actions alone." She paused and took a deep breath, "If you wish to take me to court over this, then fine, be my guest, but you will be laughed right out of court Mr. McGuire. I suggest you do a better job protecting the clients that you currently have, otherwise you will find yourself out of business faster that you can blink an eye." Stephanie said calmly and then slammed the phone down. Turning around I met her eyes and saw the dark blue hue to her eyes that she got when she was angry and turned on, too bad I knew that this was not because she wanted to rip my clothes off, because that was hot, and I could be ready to go in 2.5 seconds if need be.

She caught the thoughts as they flew through my mind, "Not now Carlos," moving closer to me she whispered in my ear, "I promise to do it later tonight, but only if your good." I groaned deep in my chest at the ideas that were rolling thru my mind and received a wicked smile in return.

Stephanie wanted to get as much information on the case as possible. After checking on my men, I walked into the large den and saw her with Mike, Binkie, Randy and her father.

"We are looking into the break ins' at the other buildings around the Foundation to see if there could be any link. It seems too convenient that this all happened in such a short time, and all at a time the McGuire was short handed." Randy explained.

"That makes sense, but it could take a while. I still don't quite understand why the Foundation was targeted other than money, since the only thing take was bank account information, which they got nothing from since we froze them all." Stephanie replied.

"Well, we were able to move quickly, unlike some of the other businesses that were targeted. Remember all of those were in high rises or buildings with at least five stories, so no outside entrance was visibly compromised. Those weren't discovered until someone came in the next day. I think that it was our luck and a coincidence that the break in at the Foundation was discovered so soon." Mike replied.

"Plus this seems to be a personal vendetta against you. To our knowledge no one else has had a home invasion like this." Randy paused then looked her straight in the eye, "Plus looking at where those hidden cameras were, it's clear this is about you?" Stephanie gave him a questioning look. "They were only found in your bedroom and bathroom." He paused again taking a deep breath, "And, by the way they were angled the bedroom cameras were pointed towards the bed and the bathroom ones, toward the tub and shower."

I felt a growl growing in my chest and apparently it was mirrored by my Babe. "I want this ass hole to pay." She growled.

"Pumpkin, we will, but you need to stay safe as well. If they were willing to break in to your home, there is no telling what they would do in other areas." I was in completed agreement with Frank.

"We have the new security system set up at the condo in New York, and we will have a body guard on Steph at all times. I'll be with her at night, and Bobby, Emma and Danny will be with us as well." I saw Steph begin to protest, but I cut her off. "It's not for long, and I'm not going to keep you from doing anything you already have planned, but you need to take this seriously. This sicko broke into your home Babe, he hurt your grandmother, whether intentionally or not it doesn't matter. We will all work together to get this taken care of ASAP. Please Babe, do this for me. You've already had one of us with you anyway, now it would just be in a work capacity as well." I explained.

Looking deeply in my eyes my Babe searched for something and then replied, "That's fine, just don't wear yourself out trying to do business and be with me all the time. The next few months are going to be busy anyway. This will just add to it."

I nodded in agreement, as long as she was safe, I was happy. "Our other thought was that McGuire has a mole in his company, but since he is less than cooperative on a regular basis, we are guaranteed that he won't listen to us if we tell him. Hopefully he will find out on his own. But I doubt it will be before his reputation is completely ruined." Randy commented.

"McGuire gets whatever he deserves. His arrogance is what caused this situation in the first place. Taking on too much business and then not following thru on his promised services, in this type of industry you just don't do that." Mike commented.

Over the course of the day we had worked out a plan to get the rest of the system at the house up and running, Val's house updated, and the Foundation. The Comm. room was going to be set up and the guys were going to begin looking into to sales meetings. Since we had the business model from all of the other offices, we were ahead of the game. Mike was using his contacts and already had some meetings scheduled for us, plus a number of part time ex-military men and women interested in working with us. Stephanie had also put us in contact with the outreach coordinator of the Foundation so that we could employ as many disabled vets as possible. Even if they couldn't be out in the field there would be plenty of work for them to do especially in the beginning.

The press, unfortunately had gotten wind that Stephanie was in town for the day and were calling none stop for comments on the break in to which she informed them that , yes, there had been a break in, and no she couldn't give any details as it was an ingoing investigation. How she deals with them on a regular basis is beyond me, the same questions over and over would drive me insane.

The day went quickly, and before we knew it we were telling everyone goodbye. All had been given their tasks, and were more than ready for the job, others were a bit hesitant with having to deal with Grandma Mazur, but I had informed them all that Lester would be go to person if anyone needed help with her. Grandma had a very big twinkle in her eye. It was sure to be an interesting week for them all. That cane would in no way slow her down, no matter what happened she wouldn't change.

Climbing on the plane and quickly taking off, Steph and I unbuckled at the first opportunity and headed for the bedroom at the back of the plane. I knew that we wouldn't be getting much rest tonight.

I heard her voice low in my ear, "So what's your first fantasy that I can make come true for you right now Carlos." I pushed her in the bedroom and slammed the door behind me, locking it behind me. Oh yeah very little sleep indeed.

**Thanks for reading along with this chapter. The next few updates will be moving the story along quickly, in the timeframe, and we will find out soon who the bad guy, or guys are. I hope you enjoyed this one. More to come next week. Have a great weekend. **


	46. Chapter 46

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_Climbing on the plane and quickly taking off, Steph and I unbuckled at the first opportunity and headed for the bedroom at the back of the plane. I knew that we wouldn't be getting much rest tonight. _

_I heard her voice low in my ear, "So what's your first fantasy that I can make come true for you right now Carlos." I pushed her in the bedroom and slammed the door behind me, locking it behind me. Oh yeah very little sleep indeed._

XXXXXX

It had been two weeks since I had been to LA, but it had passed quickly. Eight shows a week wears on you, and the only day off I got was Tuesday at this point. I love being on stage, in front of a live audience, but with everything that was going on back home, I was looking forward to this being over. Ranger had been flying back and forth trying to get thing set up and highering new employees was taking up most of his time while he was there. Lester and the others had been busy setting up the house, Val's house and the Foundation with the new systems and getting the office up and running.

It truly was amazing how well things were going. Rangeman had a reputation for being the best on the East Coast, and many of Ranger's current clients had spoken volumes of the services that were offered and were over the moon with what they had received. I think the biggest concern Ranger had was getting too big to fast at this point.

As far as who had broken into the house we were still at a stand still. Nothing new had been found just yet to confirm or deny suspitions that we had, and no one wanted to let anything get out to the media. So everything had been very tightlipped. Everyone was still staying at my house, just to make sure that everyone was safe. Grandma was healing nicely and nothing new had occurred since the new system had been installed. Randy had told me that McGuire had tried to contact them a few times, but as of yet they were not taking his calls.

I wanted to head back to LA tonight, since I had the day off, but found out that I had been requested to make an appearance at a local charity event, I wasn't really thrilled, but since it was for the youth of the area, I was more than willing to help anyway that I could. My only hope was that everything would go smoothly.

The show was going great, the theatre had no problem with the extra security, and every one had sold out. I had already been asked to extend my time, but had to decline due to personal issues, they were understanding, but we openly showing their disappointment, hoping that I would change my mind. Honestly, if this wasn't my favorite musical, I would have bowed out and taken care of my family.

Ranger had gotten back on Sunday, and went straight to Trenton to take care of that branch, he was coming up tonight for the event. I was sitting on the balcony when there was a knock at my front door. Ram was with me today so he moved to the door to check for who was here, as far as I knew anyone that would be coming had a key and no one had any appointments.

There was a delivery person behind the door holding what looked like a dozen red roses. Ram signed the slip and brought them in.

"Hmmm, wonder if Ranger sent them." I said as I approached the flowers. He had sent me flowers before, but they had always been lilies and orchids, my favorites. Reading the card my heart sank, they were from Chad Swain, my co-star from my last movie. I hadn't heard from him since that whole fiasco with the Awards. "Well, definitely not Ranger." Ram raised his eyebrow, "I'm in town and wanted to take you out to dinner tonight since you're off. I've missed you. Chad." I said shaking my head.

"Who's Chad?" Ram asked.

"The one my mother was trying to get me to go to the Awards with." I said with a frown.

"Oh, well, I guess he needs to know that you have other plans." Ram laughed.

"Not just other plans, but that I'll never be available for him to take me to dinner." I said flatly.

Just then the phone rang. "Hello" I answered.

"Steph, you got my flowers I heard. What time can I pick you up?" Chad replied.

"How about never? I have plans, and I have no interest in seeing you." I replied.

"Oh, come on Steph, you know you miss me." He said.

"Like a thorn in the side. Go find someone who's interested in seeing you Chad. I'm not." I said.

"We were good together Steph, and you know it. You need to get rid of that guy your with. He's not good enough for you. I'll pick you up at 8pm tonight and we can talk." Chad tried to tell me.

"No way in hell I'm going any where with you. And just for your information, that guy, that you are referring to is a better man than you'll ever be. Get over yourself." I went to hang up on him, but heard him speak something that made my heart drop.

"He won't be around much longer for you to worry about Steph." Chad replied.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" I was angry now. "You know nothing about him."

"I know enough. But, don't worry I'll take care of you." Chad said, "See you tonight." And then he hung up.

I stared at the phone. I looked up at Ram and it must have been obvious that I was worried. He pulled out his phone and called Ranger. After a short discussion he handed me the phone.

"What did he say Babe?" Ranger asked.

"He said pretty soon I wouldn't have to worry about you any more. But I don't know if he was saying he thought you would leave me, or something else. It just gave me the creeps." I said sadly.

"It'll be ok. I'm already on my way, and I'll have a few of the guys come with us tonight to the fundraiser. Everything will be fine." The next thing I knew there were horns blaring in the background and the phoneline went dead.

"Ranger? Ranger." I screamed.

The house phone rang just then and Ram answered it with his blank face in place. 'God this could not be happening. Please don't let this be happening.' I thought.

**Alright, I know cliffie, but let me know what you think. Let me know what you think about this one and I promise I will have another chapter out on Tuesday. Sorry no Monday, my sister is coming in from Chicago for the day and I'm taking the kids out of school to spend the day at the Exploratorium. They don't get to see her that often. One day of no school won't kill them, right? Well, the school might think differently, but at least we're doing something educational. Have a great weekend. **


	47. Chapter 47

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_ "It'll be ok. I'm already on my way, and I'll have a few of the guys come with us tonight to the fundraiser. Everything will be fine." The next thing I knew there were horns blaring in the background and the phoneline went dead._

_ "Ranger? Ranger." I screamed._

_ The house phone rang just then and Ram answered it with his blank face in place. 'God this could not be happening. Please don't let this be happening.' I thought._

XXXXXX

Talking to Steph I could hear the frustration and worry in her voice, and I wanted to get my hands on this guy. No one goes after my woman and gets away with it. I knew Ram was there to support her, but I wanted to wrap my arms around her, telling her it would be ok.

I looked up in my rearview mirror and noticed a car coming up on me quickly. Brett and Vince were in the car behind me so they could attend the fundraiser with us and then Ram could go home afterwards. I'd just call and have a few more sent to attend as well, after this latest development I wasn't going to take any chances with her.

Before she could respond to my statement the fast approaching car was next to me and slamming into the drivers' side trying to force me off the road. The phone flew from my hand and landed closed on the floor.

Trying to stay on the road, I tapped my brakes to allow the other car to go past me a bit, and caused the car to swerve in front of me. I knew they were going to lose control and just hoped they wouldn't take anyone else out with them. I tried to avoid them again as they moved in front of me and unfortunately they hit their brakes and squealing their tires and then everything went black.

XXXXXX

I came alert in a white room, hearing the beep, beep, beep of the monitor and the smell of antiseptic, something that in my life and career I was far too familiar with. There was a pressure in my left hand. I moved my fingers to grab onto whatever it was and heard an intake of breath. I heard the rustle of fabric and then hot breath on my ear, "Wake up baby. Please open your eyes. I need to know your ok. Please." I heard her plead.

I strained to open my eyes and was greeted by the most beautiful face I had ever seen in my life. My Babe. Tears had stained streaks down her cheeks, her lips a lovely shade of pink, bright blue eyes wet with still unshed tears, I couldn't keep myself from smiling at her.

"Hey" I said to her, a little rough from my dry throat.

"Hey." She said back and then kissed my lips gently. "You had me so scared. I thought I lost you. Please don't do that to me again. I'd be lost without you." Kissing me again.

"I'm not going anywhere Babe. I promise. I'm yours and nothing will change that." I wanted to marry her, but I wasn't sure what she wanted. I'd been thinking about it for a while, but neither of us had originally wanted to get married right away. What would she think if I told her that I changed my mind? She is my everything, maybe once this whole mess is over. "What happened? I remember talking to you in the car and then a crash, but then I've got nothing."

"Someone tried to run you off the road. Brett and Vince got them, but your Porsche was totaled, and they took out a few other cars along the way. No serious injuries thank goodness. You've been unconscious for about two hours, and have a few scratches and scraps from the broken glass, but nothing is broken. A nice bruise from the seatbelt, but that's better than anything that I could have hoped for. My mind was racing when you the line went dead. Thank god for Ram." She explained as more tears ran down her face. "We were just waiting for you to wake up. The doctors think you're ok to go home as long as you take it easy for a few days. You have a concussion, so you'll be staying with me in New York until you feel better."

I smiled at that. I had no plans to leave her side anytime soon, if ever. "I love you Stephanie. I'm sorry I worried you." I hugged her to me and inhaled the scent of her shampoo. This was home to me.

"Chad sent them after you." She said with her head in my neck. "They confessed as soon as they were taken into custody." I nodded. "I want to make sure that he pays for what he did." I nodded again in agreement.

"We will Babe, but now lets get out of here and go home." I said quietly.

XXXXXX

A short while later we were laying in bed at Steph's condo snuggled up in one another just enjoying being together when she broke the silence. As she ran her fingers up and down my chest she asked, "What would you say if I told you that my plans have changed a bit about what I wanted?" I stiffened at that thought. Did she not want to be with me any more? No, that couldn't be what she meant, she made me promise not to scare her again like that. "It's nothing bad, I promise. But the time I've spent with you, especially the last few weeks, have made me really think about what I want in my life." She paused seeming to gather her strength and will herself to say it. "I never wanted to get married, because it was something that my mother always insisted that I should do, along with children. The thought of turning into my mother, to me, always seemed like a fate worse than death, but that was before I met you."

She looked up at me, resting her chin on my chest and said, "I've never been as happy as I have been with you. I've been thinking about this for a while, and yes, today's accident had something to do with it, but it only made me want to say something sooner. Rather than waiting until we got everything settled with the break-ins and setting up your new branch out in California, I need to tell you. I love you with everything that I am. I don't know what I would do without you, and I don't want to find out, I just hope that you feel the same way about me." She paused to swallow and continued, "Someday I hope that you would want to marry me. I don't know how you feel about kids, we never really talked about it, but whatever you want will be fine by me. I just want to be with you, for as long as you're willing to be with me."

She stopped and I looked into those beautiful eyes I planned to get lost in for the rest of my life. I leaned down to kiss her lightly on the lips before I said, "Marry me.", kissing her lips lightly again, "Have my children.", another kiss only deeper, "I want you for you.", another kiss deeper than the last, "Not for what anyone else thinks you should be.", another kiss the deepest one yet, "Neither of us has to change who we are. We are perfect for each other just as we are. So Marry Me."

We looked at each other with smiles on our faces. She moved to kiss me and it was deeper than any other we had shared tonight. My whole body was ready to take her right then and there; my cock was at full attention and pressed against her leg, as she was half on top of me. The next thing I conscious thought as my Babe was moving so that I was poised at her entrance, was 'oh yeah' and she replied "Yes, I'll marry you." Slowly sliding down my cock and stopping, "Yes, I'll have your children." Sliding further down onto me and stopping again, "You are the love of my life, and we are perfect for each other, just the way we are." By this time I was completely sheathed inside her and we both let out a hiss. She rocked her hips slowly, making sure that nothing was being jarred and we made the sweetest love that I had ever experienced, with my Babe in total control.

We lay there, basking in the bliss of each other and I broke the silence. "When the break-ins are taken care of, I don't want to wait. I want to marry you right away. Is that okay with you? Whatever you want Babe, but if I have anything to say about it, the sooner the better."

"We better get everything taken care of quickly then. I can't wait either." She said smiling down at me from her perch on my chest.

She snuggled in then and we both drifted off to sleep and I felt like I was on cloud nine. She had made the first move, and I was going to get everything that I could have ever dreamed of, but I never thought possible. This wonderful woman had agreed to be my wife and the mother of my children. I knew that things would be difficult at times, but I would do anything for my Babe. Anything.

**Ok. So what do you think? No harm to Ranger and they both decided to move their relationship forward. Looking forward to the next few chapters, time will be moving swiftly and we will get to see who the problem is pretty soon. **

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. I have fallen behind on my replies to reviews, but I wanted to thank each and every one of you. I love to hear what you think and it make me happy to hear that you are enjoying this one. This one gives me my happy. **


	48. Chapter 48

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**Also a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed and has this story listed as a Favorite or on Alert. I love to hear what you think it drives my desire to write more. **

_Previously…_

_"It'll be ok. I'm already on my way, and I'll have a few of the guys come with us tonight to the fundraiser. Everything will be fine." The next thing I knew there were horns blaring in the background and the phone line went dead._

_ "Ranger? Ranger." I screamed._

_ The house phone rang just then and Ram answered it with his blank face in place. 'God this could not be happening. Please don't let this be happening.' I thought._

XXXXXX

The phone dropped from my hand as I watched Ram answer the house phone. He said a few words and then hung up the phone, looking at me, "Just a reporter wanting to know if you would have time for a few questions before tonight. I told them no." He said flatly.

I tried to redial the number to Ranger's phone but the call goes straight to voicemail. The panic within me was growing more and more with every second. Ram came over to me and put his arm around my shoulder. "If it were anything major the control room would call and let us know." Just then his cell phone rang and I stiffened.

I watched as Ram had a short conversation with whoever was on the phone and I saw the soldier in him take over. I knew this couldn't be good. I sank down into the chair that I was standing next too and could only hope what I feared was not what happened. I couldn't lose him now. He was the one person in this world that made me feel safe and loved no matter what. No one, not even Bobby, could give me what Ranger had given me in such a short time, true acceptance and one hundred percent of who he was. He was my soul mate, my other half that I had finally found and now would be forever lost without him.

Ram closed his phone and looked at me, "There was an accident." He started and when he saw that I was going to speak he held up his hand. Coming closer to me he sat next to me and took my hand in his before speaking again. "Someone tried to run Ranger off the road. Vince and Brett were following him up here and were able to get the ones that caused it, but in the process of trying to take out Ranger, they took others with them as well. There's a mess on the highway right now, and help is on the way. I don't know how he is because they can't reach him on the phone or through the system in the car." He paused again, "Vince said the Porsche is upside down on the shoulder of the road and had slide for a ways. Brett is working to secure his status as we speak. As soon as they know something they'll call with where they are taking him."

I could only stare at him. Then finally the dam burst and I was bawling all over Ram's chest. I couldn't lose him now, not now, not ever. I cried for what could have happened to him, I cried for the fear that I would never hear his voice again, and I cried for everything that we could have together that I never thought I would really want with anyone before. It was as though my entire life flashed before my eyes.

"Steph, he'll be fine. He's been through so much worse than this." Ram tried to comfort me, but somehow that didn't make me feel any better. I felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest. "Please calm down, we don't know enough of what's going on to jump to conclusions, and you need to be strong for him. You can't give up on him." He said softly placing a kiss on my hair.

Trying to calm myself enough to speak, I took a few shaky breaths still feeling the tears flowing down my face. "I will never give up on him." I said quietly.

"That's our girl." He replied. A few moments later his phone rang again and I cringed into him.

Opening his phone he placed the call on speaker, "Go." He said.

"Ranger is alive, but unconscious. They are taking him to the hospital as we speak and we have set up a guard watch. Brett and Vince have handed the guys over to the cops who caused the accident and they will be questioned. A total of six cars were damaged, but luckily no life threatening injuries have occurred. Four, including Ranger are being taken to the hospital. It looks like this was a hit, man the thing working in our favor here is that they aren't too smart as hit men, they've already started talking." Tanks voice boomed over the phone.

"We'll head out to the hospital now. Thanks man." Ram said.

"Thank you Tank." I said quietly.

"Hang in there Steph. He'll come through this. I'll see you there." Tank said softly and the call was ended.

"Go clean yourself up and we'll head out." Ram said pulling me from the couch.

I could only nod as I walked to the bathroom and washed my face quickly and we headed out toward the front door together. I wanted to get to the hospital as quickly as possible. I needed to be there for him.

I made a call to my agent to cancel tonight and tomorrow's schedule and make sure that no one would interrupt me. Ranger needed my focus and he was going to get it one hundred percent.

Arriving at the hospital the news crews were already in the parking lot. When we pulled up to the door we were assaulted by several crews wanting to know anything I would tell them. I steadily ignored them all, and kept on walking through the doors. I was met in the lobby by Vince, who took us up to the floor where they had Ranger. He was still being checked out, but they had informed us that he had not yet woken up yet.

Tank arrived a few minutes after us with a blank look that would send most people running scared. "The cops said the person behind the hit was identified. They're in the process of getting a warrant so they can arrest him." A chill ran down my spine.

"Who was it?" I asked him.

He shook his head as the door to the elevator opened and revealed Chad. Tank turned to see who was advancing on us and his entire body went stiff and he stepped in front of me.

"Get the hell out of here Chad. You're not welcome here." I said from behind Tank.

"I found out you were here and I was picking you up for our date like I said I would earlier." He explained with a syrupy smile.

I stepped around Tank and looked at Chad. He was just as handsome as he had been, but there was something different about him now. "I'm not going anywhere with you. We already had this discussion on the phone. Get out of here." I said as I started to turn and walk away.

Chad moved quickly and had my arm in hand and pulled me towards him. "Yes you are. I told you earlier, you were going out with me tonight and we were going to talk. Now let's go."

Before the guys could do anything I had driven my right fist into Chad's face. His grip on me released and his hand went to his face in surprise and then turned to anger. "You'll pay for that." He said trying to reach for me again, but I side stepped him and kicked him in the knee causing him to go down to one knee howling in pain.

"No one touches me if I don't want them to." I said calmly to him. "And I never want you to touch me again."

Ram was at my side before Chad could respond. Before we knew what was happening, hospital security was surrounding us with questioning looks. The only one of us that had any damage was Chad. I would have gone after him again if I could have, but at that moment I saw the doctor that was checking Ranger out exit his room and head in our direction.

I turned to meet him when I heard Chad call out, "Sorry to hear that he survived." Then a muttered "Idiots didn't know how to get a simple job done."

I froze in my tracks and turned to look at Chad, all the fear that I had for Ranger became anger towards Chad. I looked over at Tank and saw the truth in his eyes. Chad had set Ranger up.

I walked back to Chad as he was being held by hospital security and looked at him, directly in the eye. "You are a worthless piece of shit. The man in that bed is a million times better than you could ever be. I hope you enjoy your time in prison Chad, maybe you could become someone's bitch." And with that I buried my foot in his crotch with as much force as I could manage, as he bent over I brought my knee up and connected with his face hearing a satisfying crunch. I then walked over to the doctor, who stood there wide eyed as I approached him with my anger dissipating, but my fear returning full force.

"How is he?" I asked in a trembling voice. I felt Ram and Tank next to me and Ram wrapped his arm round my shoulder offering support.

"He's still unconscious, but he should be fine once he wakes up. He probably has a concussion, but luckily there was no other major damage, his cuts and scrapes have been cleaned where he was hurt by the broken glass, you can go in and sit with him." He said with a smile at me.

"Thank you doctor." I replied. I didn't hesitate and went right into Ranger's room and sat in the chair next to his bed. I grabbed his hand and silently prayed for him to wake up and be okay. Holding his hand between mine, I quietly spoke of everything that I had thought of since the moment that the phone call had ended.

I made promises to god that if Ranger would wake up now, that I would tell him everything that I felt and what I wanted. I needed to let him know exactly how I felt about him. I wanted to marry him, have children with him, spend the rest of my life making him happy. Anything he wanted from me he could have. I could never tell him no. Even if it just meant that we kept things the way they were, but I was promising to at least take that chance.

Tank had come to fill me in that Chad had been arrested and that not only were they going to charge him with attempted murder, and solicitation of murder, they were also charging him with assault on me for the incident in the hospital. I laughed at that one. "I think he has a few more bruises than I do Tank."

He laughed with me for a moment, "Yeah, you did good Steph. I never want to be on your bad side."

"I don't think you could Big Guy." I said with a slight smile and then returned to looking at Ranger, smoothing the hair off his face, touching his arm, any connection with him helped to calm my nerves.

Tank said quietly, "I never thought that I would see the day that Ranger fell for anyone as hard as he's fallen for you. And I can see that the feeling is mutual. You two are good for each other. I don't think I've ever seen this man as happy as he has been since he met you."

"I love him with everything that I am Tank, and that will never change." I said never looking away from Ranger. "I've never known a love like this, and if I have my way, I'm never letting it go."

It was a few minutes before Tank spoke again, "I don't think that he'll have a problem with that." I could hear the smile in his voice, and then I heard the door close softly behind him.

I felt his hand twitch just moments later and I begged him to wake up. When his eyes finally opened I couldn't have been happier. I wanted to tell him everything I was feeling right now, but all I could do was say 'hey' and then the fear was gone. I knew no matter what, I would be with this man forever. He may not know it yet, but I was going to marry him, someday.

XXXXXX

The relief was overwhelming. Bringing him back to the condo made my heart fill with such love and happiness that I could have burst from the shear magnitude of it all. He had a concussion and needed to take it easy, but I had to have him in my bed, our bed. I had to touch him and feel him, yet I needed to remember that I had to be gentle. Laying in bed I thought how I was going to explain my feelings to him, I knew that he had promised not to scare me like that again, and that he wasn't going anywhere, but did he truly understand what I meant? Probably not, I guess that I should really get it out, no matter how nervous I was about how he would react.

Maybe that was why I chose to talk to him about it when I was laying on his chest running my hands all over him, just trying to assure myself that he was right here with me.

When I started to speak his body stiffened. Explaining about my mother, how I had been treated as a kid, what the expectations were growing up, and why I had felt the way I did, but now I felt differently. As I spoke and looked at him in the eye I knew he was absorbing what I was telling him, I wanted kids, marriage and a family with him. I saw the sparkle in his eyes and as he leaned his head down to kiss me I could see the smile on his lips. With each kiss, my body grew warmer as he asked me to marry him, to have his children, and telling me that he loved me for me. I could have had an orgasm on the spot; honestly, no one could do to me what this man has ever done.

I couldn't hold off any longer, I kissed him with everything in me and then moved over his body gently, I placed his already throbbing cock at my entrance. With every answer I took him in a little deeper until he was completely sheathed within me. I rocked gently, not willing to hurt him any more than he had been today. The connection was enough, passion, desire, love, triumph, completeness coursed through both of us as we caressed each other to completion.

I knew we would need to wait until the whole mess in California was taken care of, but I wanted to get married as soon as possible. I didn't want to wait to tie this man to me. I wasn't enough by myself anymore, without him I was only half a person, and I made sure to make my feelings known before we drifted off to sleep, the most content that I have ever felt in my life.

**Okay, so there was Steph's POV of what happened. Let me know what you think. Sorry for the delay, but it has been crazy with Girl Scouts and now Softball practice has started. More to come this Friday, we'll start our journey back to CA to resolve some issues.**


	49. Chapter 49

**Disclaimer: I love the Stephanie Plum series, but I don't own them and I don't make anything off of them. I don't own any of the songs that are used in this chapter and all original artists have been notated at the end of this entry.**

**Warning: There will be no 'cupcake' in this story. This will be a Babe HEA. This is my third FanFiction attempt, completely different from my first and I Promise to complete it. I am having a lot of fun with the story so far. Thank you in advance for reading and please let me know what you think. **

**I know it's been a while, but this one will be completed if it kills me. The kids are back at school, but I also started work again and am trying to adjust myself. It will be slow, but there are only about 5 or 6 more updates to this story. Thank you for following along. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I have writing it. **

_Previously…_

_I knew we would need to wait until the whole mess in California was taken care of, but I wanted to get married as soon as possible. I didn't want to wait to tie this man to me. I wasn't enough by myself anymore, without him I was only half a person, and I made sure to make my feelings known before we drifted off to sleep, the most content that I have ever felt in my life. _

XXXXXX

We were finally heading back to CA after my time on Broadway, and I was more than happy to have it done with. I loved every minute of being on stage, don't get me wrong, but since the accident with Carlos, I wasn't really big on being away from him for long periods of time right now. I felt like we were stronger together than apart. Chad had been evaluated by a Psychiatrist and was deemed 'off his rocker', well insane, but you get my point. He was being committed for an undetermined amount of time, maybe he and my mother could be bunk mates.

Climbing onto the plane I couldn't wait to get back to my house. It sounded like things were going well for the new Rangeman office in CA, the hiring was going quickly, many being referred from the Foundation for many of the different types of positions. The demand for security services was unexpected, many of McGuire's clients were ready to jump ship as soon as Rangeman was up and running at full capacity. Uncle Mike was using his contacts to push through all of the local police contract work that McGuire had done with the PD previously, the only hitch was that they wanted to have a liaison between the PD and Rangeman. The PD didn't have someone on staff at the moment that had the time to go back and forth. When I heard this I had the perfect idea, but I wasn't sure he would go for it. Hence the reason that Joe Morelli was taking the flight back to CA with me.

Val and the girls had flown back earlier in the week, with Carlos, because they had some summer activities that they had planned with friends and Joe had gone back to work in Trenton. It only took me a few hours to make a side trip and talk to him, and then the Chief since he needed the time off, so I could get him to come along with me. It helps to have people owe you favors, although when I explained what I had in mind he wasn't all that thrilled at possibly losing one of his best officers.

I looked at the man across from me in the seat looking out the window as we took off. He had made my sister unbelievably happy in the short time that they had been together, I just hoped that he was just as happy with her, otherwise there was no point in this move for him.

"So I hope you don't mind, but you'll be staying at Val's house while you're in CA." I said with a smile.

Joe laughed, "It's definitely no hardship. She makes me laugh more than I have in a long while."

"I know you guys have spent a lot of time together over the last few weeks and months, but I can't remember when I've seen her happier. Thank you Joe, it means a lot to me to see her living again." I said sadly.

"I know she and the girls have had a hard time since Steve died, but if there's anything that I can do to make it better for them I will. I love those girls Steph, you don't have anything to worry about from me." He said confirming what I was thinking. I knew he was a good guy and only wanted what was best for everyone. "So this job you mentioned, why did you think of me? I'm sure that you know a lot of cops that would be able to handle this."

I looked at him for a moment. "Well, there are a few reasons. You're a great cop. You worked your way up thru the department, and you know what its like to be in the service, so you'll have a lot in common with the guys on staff at Rangeman. You already have a relationship with Ranger and the main guys from here, so they trust you. I trust you." I laughed and continued. "It also doesn't hurt that you're in a relationship with my sister and it would be easier on both of you if you were both on the same side of the country. I know the girls will enjoy having you around if this works out." He laughed in agreement. "It would be a promotion for you, but I don't want you to think that you are being forced into this. Talk with the Chief and Ranger, if it works for all of you great, if not, then nothing is lost."

"To be honest, I was looking for a way to spend more time with them, so you may have solved that issue for me. I've also been thinking about getting out of vice for a while, something different may be a good thing. My mom probably won't be too happy, but I can't live in the burg' forever. It's not like she can't come to visit." We laughed at that.

We talked the majority of the flight about what to expect when we got there and got caught up on everything from the investigation on the break ins at my house. Since the guys had the system up and running in the house nothing had happened since Grandma fell, but that still didn't mean there wasn't a threat. Carlos had been flying back and forth again after he healed from the accident. We hated to be apart, but knew it was only for a short time. If Carlos wasn't with me, then I had three guys with me. A bit over kill if you asked me, but then again, I was in New York, and there were a lot of crazy people out there. I limited the number of appearances outside of the show, but I was still constantly busy. I was really looking forward to being home for a while.

As the plane taxied to its stop my heart was pounding in my chest, I couldn't wait to see Carlos. It may have only been a few days, but I couldn't stand to be away from him. The feeling must have been mutual, because as soon as the door was open he bounded on the plane and had me in his arms, his lips attached to mine and not a fraction of space was between us. Our surroundings forgotten for the moment, the feel of his body against mine almost had me going over the edge right on the spot. Breaking apart before we embarrassed ourselves, we smiled and looked into each others eyes.

"I love you Babe, I've missed you." Carlos said in a whisper against my lips as he kissed me gently.

"I love you too Carlos. I couldn't wait to get back to you." We moved to the door of the plane and were able to see Joe and Val in an embrace similar to ours just a few minutes before.

"She wanted to surprise him. I think it worked." We laughed as we exited the plane and made our way over to the two lovebirds.

"Alright you two, lets get going we've got a lot to do and a bad guy to take care of." I said to them. Hearing groans coming from both of them I couldn't help but laugh. I think Joe being here was going to be one of my best ideas as of late.

Carlos gave me a wink and we all climbed in the car and were on our way to the house. I was ready to make the people pay that were responsible for all of the havoc that had been caused, and they were going to pay dearly. But first, I needed to get busy myself, with Carlos. God what this man does to me!

**More to come in a week or so. Thanks for reading. Let me know what you think. **


End file.
